Conference Agenda

The objective of the present work is to analyze the profile of the intellectuals and the literature that influence the Master's and Doctorate courses in the top of Public Administration field in Brazil.

The investigation is done from the focus of the decolonial theory, an epistemological perspective that proposes a reinterpretation of social, economic and cultural relations, highlighting the need for a plural and inclusive epistemology in the construction of knowledge, in which Public Administration is included. In this context, the decolonial approach brings in a central way elements of discussion of the dissemination of knowledge.

To carry out the investigation, quanti- and qualitative data were collected and analyzed for a scientometric study of the best-evaluated Public Administration programs in Brazil. The data source used was the Sucupira Platform, from Ministry of Education in Brazil, which contains the official data of the graduation programs in Brazil.

When selecting the programs with the highest scores, we sought to observe the trends of the programs that are leaders in the field – and which have more prestige and receive more resources from government agencies that promote science in the country.

The second cut was the type of courses (disciplines of the curriculum) analyzed, the mandatory ones; and from the set of their bibliographic references, only the mandatory references were analyzed. With this, we selected what is a priority in the programs' curriculum; as well as the authors that are really important to be read, according to the program.

The database allowed, among others, to elaborate the profile of the professors and coordinators of the courses; to elaborate the profile of the authors cited in the Teaching Plans of the disciplines selected in the samples; and to analyse the works cited.

The results indicate that the profile of the groups analyzed is composed mostly of white male people; and that there is a preponderance of the influence of intellectual productions from the Global North. Among the most used works, few are inscribed in a critical perspective. Unlike the undergraduate courses in the field, there aren't works with a decolonial perspective or that debate the etnic and racial questions. The research points to a reproduction of the patterns, trends and agendas of the Global North, despite the specific issues and needs of Brazilian society, which are little discussed.

The work infers an impoverishment of the field caused by the increasing imposition of trends and agendas from the global North. Also, that the reinforcement of technical training has apparently weakened the dimension of problematization. It shows, then, the necessity to deepen the reflexivity of the field in Brazil. On the other hand, research has shown that there are gaps and criticism, although very limited. In this sense, the alliance with forms of resistance – which are also produced in the North – is important to transform science in the Global South.

Research productivity and impact are highly valued in the scientific field. It is regarded as a significant determinant of career advancement, financial support, academic recognition, and prominent personal position. Unfortunately, this is an area that has demonstrated a long history of gender disparity. This quantitative study aims to validate and identify gender gaps concerning women’s research productivity to help assess effectiveness of interventions and policies aiming to improve female participation and representation in scientific research. Although, gender gap in scientific publications is a global phenomenon, but this should not mask potential variations at both the national and regional levels. Hence this study is contributing to the thin literature under this topic on the Arab region, focusing our analysis on Egyptian researchers. The study lies at the intersection between bibliometrics and econometrics using classic bibliometric indicators as the main variables under testing. Original data was constructed and harmonized for the purpose of this study, extracted from Scopus Elsevier, the largest citation and abstract database in the world. The study applies descriptive statistics, regression models, and secondary research to examine characteristics of our sample, test correlations, and learn about potential women positive deviants. The study demonstrates a gender gap in scientific research productivity and impact disfavoring Egyptian women scientists and in line with the majority of global literature assumptions. It argues the importance of a number of remedial policies and strategies on institutional, national, and global levels.

I. PROBLEM STATEMENT AND PURPOSE

With the rapid development of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology, it improves people's quality of life. However, in the process of rapid development of AI, there exists a large number of underserved populations that are neglected. Elderly groups are less capable of accepting and using smart devices and AI applications. Remote and rural areas are unable to access advanced AI services in a timely manner due to weak network infrastructure and lack of technical resources. Disabled people and low-income groups also face the problem of poor adaptability of AI services, which makes these groups marginalized in the AI era, further exacerbating social inequality and defeating the original purpose of AI development to benefit the public. The public sector should pay attention to the unfair behavior in AI development and make changes.

II.METHODOLOGY

Designed questionnaires for different underserved populations (the elderly, the disabled, residents in remote areas, etc.), covering their knowledge of AI technology, frequency of use, difficulties encountered in the process of use, and demand for AI services. Through the combination of online and offline methods, the scope of the survey sample was expanded to ensure the diversity and representativeness of the sample. Statistical methods were used to organize and analyze the recovered questionnaire data to draw quantitative conclusions.

III.FINDINGS

The survey shows that among the elderly population, few of them are able to skillfully use basic AI smart device applications, such as simple cell phone APPs, and most of them have operational difficulties when facing complex AI services. Among residents in remote areas, few of them have access to advanced AI education and medical services, mainly due to insufficient network coverage and lack of relevant equipment and professional guidance. Among people with disabilities, the voice interaction AI products that can be used by visually impaired people are less than the number of similar products in the market, and there are problems such as unclear voice prompts and complicated operation procedures; and it is almost difficult for the hearing impaired people to get effective information from the existing AI visual interaction services.

IV. PROPOSALS

The government should formulate and improve policies and regulations related to the fairness of AI services, and give policy support such as tax incentives and financial subsidies to AI enterprises that focus on underserved populations, so as to guide enterprises to increase their investment in this field. Establish a strict review mechanism for AI products and services to ensure that special groups can enjoy fair AI services. Strengthen public education to raise social awareness of the fairness of AI services, and advocate enterprises to fulfill their social responsibility and pay attention to the needs of underserved people. AI companies are encouraged to increase research and analysis of the needs of underserved populations during the product development phase, and to incorporate the usage needs of special groups into product design specifications.

1. Problem Statement and Purpose

In Palestine, women remain significantly underrepresented in senior public sector and local governance positions, holding less than 15% of leadership roles. Despite high educational attainment, structural barriers—such as patriarchal norms and weak quota enforcement—limit their meaningful participation. This exclusion undermines inclusive policy-making and equitable local development (UN Women, 2021; PCBS, 2023).

This study aims to investigate and understand women's participation in decision-making roles within Palestinian local government and municipalities. It also seeks to explore the influence of donor requirements on promoting such participation. The core problem this research addresses is the underrepresentation of women in leadership positions within these local bodies. The purpose is to provide a comprehensive analysis that combines statistical evidence with qualitative insights to identify the challenges and opportunities for increasing women's involvement.

2. Methodology

A mixed-methods research design will be utilized, incorporating both quantitative and qualitative approaches. The quantitative component will involve analyzing secondary data from the Palestinian Labour Force Survey, specifically focusing on public sector employees in local municipalities. This analysis will compare key variables like educational attainment, wages, career progression, and promotion trends across genders. Additionally, a structured questionnaire will be administered to senior municipal employees. This questionnaire will assess the impact of donor-imposed regulations, particularly those linked to budget allocations and project funding, on the inclusion of women in decision-making roles and on fostering more gender-balanced representation.

The qualitative component will involve in-depth semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions. Participants will include local council members, senior municipal officials, representatives from donor agencies, gender experts, and women who are or have been in decision-making positions. These qualitative sessions will explore the perceived value of women's representation, identify structural and cultural barriers that hinder their advancement, and document successful case studies where female leadership has positively impacted governance or service delivery.

3. Expected Results

While specific findings are not yet available as this outlines the research plan, the methodology is designed to yield a range of insights. The quantitative analysis is expected to reveal gender disparities in employment, wages, and career progression within Palestinian local governments. It should also shed light on whether donor conditionalities have translated into concrete changes in women's inclusion. The qualitative data, on the other hand, will provide a nuanced understanding of the societal and organizational challenges women face, such as cultural norms, traditional power structures, and the effectiveness of existing policies. It will also highlight best practices and the tangible benefits of women's leadership.

The path towards global equality is not paved by collective interests, shared norms and burdens rather, navigates through a free-market system that has protected strong economies and helped them retain their privileged global economic competition. With its many challenges, the free market approach to global business and governance has been touted as the panacea for global economic development and equality. Many countries in the global north argue that economic inequality is the result of several decades of poor political decisions in the global south. From the global south perspective, this argument misses the big picture issues related to lack of collective global economic interests, shared norms and economic burdens and real drivers of global economic inequality. The aim of this study is to analyze what it will take to minimize the rising global economic inequality. There are several avenues to economic growth and equality. Key among these avenues include capital formation, ownership of factors of production such as technology, loans and grants or natural resources exploitation. While the north derives its economic mighty from capital formation and technology, the south relies on loans from the north and primary naturals resources locally. Data on key drivers of economic development, technology and naturals resources endowment from 20 richest countries from the north and 20 poorest countries from the south are collected. Study carried out panel data regression analysis using gross national income as the dependent variable. We took a regional approach instead of individual countries. The regression outcomes show a poor model fit, meaning that many factors that were selected do not explain the outcome. This is in part because many of the factors responsible for global inequality originate from outside the countries that are most impacted negatively, the south.