Linking resource efficiency to environmental sustainability in developing countries

Material resource efficiency (MRE) is widely recognized as a key strategy for promoting responsible consumption and production. However, the impacts of MRE on environmental sustainability (ES), measured by load capacity factor (LCF), have not been fully elucidated in developing countries (DCs). Using a method of moments quantile regression (MMQR) approach, this study examines the effects of MRE on LCF across 116 DCs from 2000 to 2021, while controlling for country-specific heterogeneity. The findings indicate that MRE has a beneficial impact on the LCF across all quantiles. However, DCs with higher LCF benefit more from MRE improvements, as the MRE coefficient rises from 0.275 at the 10th quantile to 0.526 at the 90th quantile. Also, the role of MRE is more pronounced in DCs with better income and regulatory performance. The findings further implied that the effect of MRE on LCF is heterogeneous across different regions, with a positive role of MRE in DCs in Asia, Africa, and America to enhance LCF. The findings are consistent across several robustness analyses. Therefore, governments and policymakers in DCs should support eco-design and sustainable materials management, raise public awareness of responsible consumption, strengthen multi-stakeholder partnerships for efficient resource use, and adopt robust socio-economic and regulatory policies to improve MRE and promote LCF. Thus, the findings of this study present a framework for policy guidelines that facilitate efficient and environmentally friendly natural resource use in DCs, aligning with SDG 8.4 and SDG 12.