THE SUSTAINABLE SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT AND ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY: MODERATING ROLE OF REGULATORY QUALITY

Abstract

Environmental sustainability has become major challenge for developing countries due to rapid industrialization, increasing resource consumption, and environmental degradation. This study examines impact of sustainable supply chain management on environment sustainability, with moderating variable: environmental regulatory quality. The data were obtained from internationally recognized sources, including World Bank, WGI, EPI, OECD & United Nations databases. Thus, panel regression techniques, including descriptive statistics, correlation analysis, fixed and random effects models, Hausman test, moderation analysis, and robustness checks, were used for the data analysis. Findings reveal that SSCM has a positive and statistically significant effect on environmental sustainability. The ERQ also positively influences environmental sustainability and significantly strengthens the relationship between SSCM and environmental sustainability. These results indicate that effective regulatory frameworks enhance the environmental benefits of the sustainable supply chain practices. The study concludes that improving environmental sustainability measures in developing countries requires the combined efforts of organizations adopting sustainable supply chain leading practices and measures from governments for strengthening environmental governance.