乡镇撤并改革和农村经济增长

The Administrative Division Reform at the Town Level and the Rural Economic Growth

本文利用中国31个省市1979—2007年的面板数据,分析了乡镇撤并改革对农村经济增长和局部公共品供给的影响。研究发现:一、每百万农村人口乡镇数目下降1个百分点,每万农村人口有效灌溉面积和每万农村人口乡村卫生人数分别下降0.06和0.09个百分点;二、每百万农村人口乡镇和村委会个数下降1个百分点,乡镇级农业税征收人员总数分别下降0.77和0.72个百分点,非农从业人员比例增加0.15和0.36个百分点;三、每百万农村人口乡镇数目下降1个百分点,农民人均实际纯收入分别增长0.29百分点。研究结果表明,乡镇撤并弱化了基层行政力量,减少了农村局部公共品供给,对农村生活和发展产生了一定的负面影响。但同时,乡镇撤并也减轻了农民负担和基层的行政干预,改善了农村经济结构。因此,从整体上看,乡镇撤并对农村经济发展有一定的促进作用。

This paper investigates the effect of the administrative division reform at the town level on the China＇ s rural economic growth with the panel data from the 31 provinces in 1979 -2007. The results find that： （1） If the town number per capita decreases 1 percent, the effective irrigation area per capita and medical workers at town and village per capita will decrease 0. 06 and 0. 09 percent respectively; （2） If the town and village number per capita increase 1 percent, the total number of the agricultural tax man will decrease 0. 77 and 0. 72 percent, the non - agriculture employment ratio will increase 0. 15 and 0. 36 percent respectively; （3） If the town number per capita decreases with 1 percent, the real net income per capita will increase 0. 29 percent. The results show that. the administrative division reform would weaken the capacity of the local government and reduce the supply of the local public goods; but at the same time, the reform will mitigate the tax burden and improve the economic mobility. In the long run, the positive effect of the reform will overcome its negative effect, so the real net income of the rural people had been improved.