Political Institutions and Environmental Sustainability: Asymmetric Effect of Institutional Quality Indicators on Ecological Degradation

This study investigates the asymmetric effects of political stability and corruption on ecological footprint using time series data from 1984 to 2021 for Pakistan. The paper uses the nonlinear autoregressive distributed lag (NARDL) method to get accurate results regarding the positive and negative shocks of political stability. Besides, the NARDL method is utilized to identify the cointegrating link between the parameters, with a particular focus on uncovering asymmetric consequences in the long term. In addition, this research also includes natural resources, urbanization and economic progress in the model. The study results show that (i) political instability in Pakistan reduces environmental quality in both shocks; (ii) control of corruption increases the air quality in the negative shock; (iii) natural resources and urban population positively affect environmental quality; and (iv) economic progress has a favourable effect on environmental worsening. Additionally, the findings of the NARDL estimates and the outcomes of the robustness check are consistent. Particularly noteworthy is the fact that the general policy recommendation highlights the need for policymakers to vigorously synchronize their efforts to contend with the severe environmental degradation and political risk in Pakistan.