Do ICTs Boost Agricultural Productivity?

Based on panel data from the Rural Fixed Point Survey of the Ministry of Agriculture over the period 2004-2016 and supplementary survey data on information and communications technology(ICT)applications in the countryside,this paper employs the difference in differences(DID)method to analyze the effects of ICT applications on rural households’agricultural total factor productivity(TFP)with mobile phone signal,internet and 3G mobile network connections as indicators,and decomposes and evaluates the constituent factors.Our findings reveal a positive effect of ICTs on rural households’TFP,which primarily stemmed from rising agricultural technical efficiency.However,ICTs exerted no significant effect on agricultural technical progress during this paper’s data period due to limited rural human capital.These findings are consistent with robustness test results based on counterfactual and matching methods.

Achievements and Challenges in China's Rural Development

China's grain output has been growing steadily since the 1980 s.After reaching equilibrium of supply and demand with the subsequent moderate surplus in the late 1990 s,the output of major agricultural products entered a period of growth deceleration,output stability,and continued increase in per-capita possession of agricultural products.The household contract responsibility system is a major factor contributing to the phenomenal growth in agriculture in the early 1980 s.After entering the stage of regular growth rate,crop yield is mainly driven by the selection of superior crop varieties,machinery,irrigation,fertilization,use of ground cover film,and concentration of agricultural production into advantageous areas.Under the combined effect of these factors,the contribution of agricultural total factor productivity(TFP) to agricultural growth has been on the increase.With an expanded scope of employment,farmers are contributing more and more to economic growth.Their income and welfare are improving rapidly as well.In the recent decade,China has made much headway in its policy on the countryside,agriculture and farmers,and the environment for rural development has improved to some extent.However,rural development is still confronted with such challenges as weakening agricultural competitiveness,reduced tillage intensity,difficulties in large-scale farming and lack of cooperation among farmers.

Productivity Growth in China's Agriculture During 1985-2010

This paper made an empirical analysis of China＇s agricultural growth path and influential factors using the province-level panel data of agricultural inputs and outputs during 1985-2010.The findings indicate that the increase in agricultural inputs and TFP contributed 40.6 and 55.2% to the agricultural output growth,respectively;China＇s agriculture had jumped out of the pattern which output growth was mainly driven by increasing input.Of the total inputs,chemical fertilizer had the most important contribution to the output growth,followed by mechanical inputs.The contribution of land and labor was negative.China＇s agricultural output growth belonged to the type of induced technology innovation.China＇s agricultural TFP growth had characteristics of fluctuations over time and unbalanced between regions,but the gap between the eastern,the middle,and the western regions has been narrowed.