Evolution Of Regional Disparities Research Articles

Evaluation of the Performance of SMEs in the Context of Regional Development

Research background: Regional development of the European territory is becoming a key priority area and thus arouses interest in analyzes of the impact of development not only of business activities on economic competitiveness. Entrepreneurship is an important part of every country's economic system and has important implications for the growth of society. The paper focuses on the possibility of identifying the determinants of regional competitiveness of the manufacturing industry with a focus on defining their impact on SME performance, in the sense of EVA in the programming period 2014-2020. Purpose of the article: The presented paper focuses on the performance of companies in the Czech economy in connection with the reflection of national regional policy documents. Purpose of the article is to evaluate the economic performance of small and medium-sized enterprises in the manufacturing industry in connection with the level of development of the regions in the Czech Republic in which they are located. Methods: The evaluation of the achieved level of regional development is performed at the level of regions and administrative districts of municipalities with extended powers. Through multidimensional regression modelling, the determinants of regional development disparities are identified with a focus on defining their impact on the performance of small and medium-sized enterprises expressed by the economic value added (EVA) indicator. Findings & Value Added: Public sector expenditure on science and research was evaluated as the most important parameter of regional disparities, which explains the economic performance of companies. Based on the achieved results, measures are proposed for the cultivation of the business environment for the next programming period. The contribution is the proposals for the formulation of regional policy with a focus on the segment of small and medium-sized enterprises.

Assessing Regional Development Disparities in Wasit Governorate a Descriptive Analysis of Service Delivery and Resource Allocation

Assessing Regional Development Disparities in Wasit Governorate a Descriptive Analysis of Service Delivery and Resource Allocation

Research on Territorial Spatial Development Non-Equilibrium and Temporal–Spatial Patterns from a Conjugate Perspective: Evidence from Chinese Provincial Panel Data

Clarifying the intrinsic nature and formation mechanisms of the territorial spatial development non-equilibrium, optimizing the allocation of territorial resources, promoting regional balanced development, and alleviating regional development disparities have become common endeavors of all countries seeking to enhance development quality. This study, based on the land use and socio-economic data of 31 provinces and cities in China from 2006 to 2020, utilized the kernel density estimation method and ArcGIS spatial analysis to explore the spatiotemporal evolution characteristics of China’s territorial spatial development non-equilibrium. The research findings are as follows: (1) From 2006 to 2020, both the land development intensity and land supply capacity showed an increasing trend, with increases of 21.4% and 8.03%, respectively. However, their spatiotemporal evolutions significantly differed. (2) The state of the territorial spatial development non-equilibrium in China significantly improved, with a rising trend in the territorial spatial equilibrium degree. Regional disparities in the territorial spatial equilibrium degree decreased. The number of provinces and cities in a state of underdevelopment decreased from 23 to 8, while the number in an equilibrium state increased from 7 to 21. The central and western regions showed more significant improvements in the territorial spatial equilibrium degree and a greater reduction in regional disparity when compared to the eastern and northeastern regions. (3) China exhibited distinct regional disparities in the territorial spatial equilibrium degree. The overdeveloped areas were Beijing and Shanghai. The underdeveloped regions were primarily concentrated in western areas, including Sichuan, Yunnan, and Xinjiang. The high-level equilibrium regions were predominantly located in the southeastern coastal provinces and the central plains region, while the low-level equilibrium regions included Inner Mongolia, Ningxia, Qinghai, and the three northeastern provinces. (4) From the perspective of the number of agglomeration types, the order is HH (high–high) > LH (low–high) > LL (low–low) > HL (high–low), and China’s TSED exhibits a spatial proximity peer effect. The innovation of this study consists of the following aspects: (1) The clarification of the fact that the essence of equilibrium does not require an exact 1:1 match, as with “two horses”; rather, it entails the maintenance of a slight surplus of land supply capacity over land development intensity. This approach allows the possibility of future sustainable development by leaving room for expansion. (2) The differentiation between high-intensity conjugation (in terms of both quantity and quality) and low-intensity conjugation (quantity only) from a conjugate perspective. This categorization aids in a more comprehensive and in-depth understanding of the territorial spatial development non-equilibrium and its spatiotemporal patterns. It provides crucial information for the formulation of sustainable national territorial development plans and the promotion of a regional development equilibrium.

Estimating built-up area carbon emissions through addressing regional development disparities with population and nighttime light data

Carbon emission inventories in urban built-up areas are critical for formulating effective emission reduction policies. Nighttime light data, reflecting socioeconomic activities, is routinely used as a proxy for estimating emissions. However, the reliability of this proxy is limited in areas with minimal or absent lighting and demonstrates variability according to the urban development. To address these limitations, a novel approach was developed. Firstly, it enhances the representation of human activities under different light values through integrating light values and population distributions into multidimensional proxy features. Secondly, cities with different socio-economic development were clustered to minimize the development disparities within the same cluster. Four clusters were detected including ‘Agriculture-dependent & Low-density’, ‘Agriculture-dependent & High-density’, ‘Industry-oriented’, and ‘Tertiary-oriented’. Then A multilayer perceptron regressor, refined with a moving average method, was employed to model the nonlinear relationships between emissions and these proxy features. The results show a significant increase in modeling accuracy when regional development disparities are incorporated through this clustering strategy. Additionally, the Shapley Additive Explanatory method was utilized to analyze the influence of regional development heterogeneity on the estimation model. It demonstrated that areas with high light intensity and population significantly influence emission estimates in all clusters, except for the ‘Industry-oriented cluster’. This finding underscores the varying effectiveness of proxy features across different regions, emphasizing the importance of considering regional development disparities. Finally, based on the estimated inventory obtained, spatio-temporal hot spot detection pinpointed eastern and central China as significant emission hot spots. This research not only enhances the data resources for managing carbon emissions but also underscores the need for inter-city cooperation strategies to achieve China's carbon reduction targets.

A study of the impact of the digital economy on regional energy efficiency

The digital economy, emerging as a new form of economic system, holds a crucial position in enhancing energy efficiency. It does so by streamlining the distribution of resources with the help of data and augmenting the flow efficiency of production factors. This paper examines the precise role and mechanism of the digital economy in enhancing energy efficiency from both theoretical and empirical perspectives. This paper utilises panel data from China's provinces and cities over a fifteen-year period, ranging from 2006 to 2021. The fixed-effects model is employed to investigate the precise pathway in which the level of digital economy development influences energy efficiency. The study reveals that the digital economy has a notable impact on enhancing energy efficiency. The analytical mechanism indicates that the digital economy effectively improves energy efficiency by advancing regional marketisation, optimising the industrial structure, and fostering innovation and the adoption of new technologies. Owing to considerable disparity among diverse parts of China, the digital economy seems to have a positive impact on the eastern and central regions, while its influence remains restricted in the western regions. Meanwhile, the areas encompassed by the Yangtze River Economic Belt are the most viable for advancement in energy efficiency through the digital economy. The influence of the digital economy on energy efficiency is markedly inconsistent due to the considerable variation in resource allocation among various regions. The role of the digital economy in enhancing energy efficiency is particularly evident in regions with moderate resource endowment. Thus, this study contends that realisation of the digital economy's capacity requires the government to consider the regional development disparities and resource endowment circumstances. To achieve balanced regional growth and comprehensive progress in energy efficiency, the government must develop tailored policies that promote marketisation, optimise industrial structure, and incentivise technological advancement. Therefore, the implementation of these measures is crucial.

Internal trade and environmental policy effectiveness in developing countries: A binary endogenous growth model with regional Heterogeneity

The shift of environmental pollution from developed to developing countries is largely induced by global labor and trade trends. Unlike their developed counterparts, developing countries face more pronounced regional disparities in social development within the realm of environmental governance. This paper proposes a binary endogenous model to assess the implications of environmental policies on such developing nations with sizable regional disparities. The model enhances the precision in simulating real-world ramifications of environmental policy implementation. It reveals that the 'pollution haven' effect extends beyond just the relocation of pollutant-generating industries to less developed regions; it also leads to the shipment of products fabricated using environmentally-degrading processes from less developed to developed regions, thereby undermining environmental regulation. Furthermore, the model's results were juxtaposed with China's increasingly stringent national environmental protection policy, adopted since 2000. The study confirms that environmental degradation has a substantial spatial spillover effect positively correlated with internal trade volume. The paper's conclusions assist in offering a new evaluative framework for the ensuing examination of environmental policy practicality in developing countries. It also recommends policy-making tools for enhancing the effectiveness of environmental regulations in these regions, such as limiting internal trade of polluting products alongside environmental levies and subsidies.

LEED certification system for green buildings in China: Examining spatial differences, temporal evolution, and spatial overflow

This paper examines the spread of green building development in China by analyzing the implementation of the LEED certification system across 31 provinces from 2006 to 2022. To investigate spatial differences, spatial-temporal evolution, and spatial spillovers of green building development in China, we employed various statistical methods, including Standard Distance Ellipse, Dagum's Gini Coefficient, Kernel Density Estimation, Markov Chain Analysis, Moran's I Exponential Analysis, and Social Network Analysis. The findings reveal the formation of a green building cluster in a northeast-southwest orientation, at the core of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei, Yangtze River Delta, and Pearl River Delta regions. There is compelling evidence of substantial regional disparities in green building development, primarily driven by inter-regional differences, which has resulted in a significant gap between the eastern and non-eastern regions. This study identifies the presence of “club convergence” and the “Matthew effect” in China's green building landscape, where spatial factors play a crucial role. Furthermore, a distinct and stable spatial clustering is observed, indicating a complex and multi-faceted spatial association network that goes beyond geographical proximity and neighborhood effects. This network reveals diverse positions and roles for provinces and cities. The eastern provinces and cities are found to exert strong control and dominance while also playing a significant siphoning role. On the other hand, the western provinces and cities have been marginalized, experiencing minimal dividend spillover from the development of other provinces.

A Study on the Spatio-Temporal Evolution Characteristics of Social Development Levels in China

With the increase in regional economic development disparities, a regional coordinated development strategy is put forward that prioritizes human welfare and holistic social progress over a purely materialistic growth model. To address the challenges of balanced regional development, this paper has developed a multidimensional assessment framework of social development encompassing education, healthcare, culture, and social security. Using the entropy weight TOPSIS method, this study measures the social development level across 296 Chinese prefecture-level cities from 1990 to 2020. It explores the spatio-temporal evolution characteristics of China’s social development level through the Dagum Gini coefficient decomposition method and exploratory spatial data analysis. The results indicate that (1) the level of social development in China exhibits a fluctuating upward trend over the time series, showing a phase-wise pattern of decline–rise–rise; (2) there is a clear heterogeneity in the level of social development, with a general hierarchy of Eastern, Northeastern, Western, and Central regions in terms of social development; (3) spatially, China’s social development level has evolved from a patchy distribution in 1990 to a clustered distribution around urban agglomerations by 2020, with pronounced characteristics of spatial imbalance; (4) the level of social development in China displays varying degrees of spatial clustering, with this trend intensifying over time; and (5) over the period 1990–2020, the overall disparity in China’s social development level presents a fluctuating trend, with a notable reduction after an initial increase, and regional disparities following the order of Central, Western, Eastern, and Northeastern regions. This research offers valuable insights for policymakers and scholars seeking to understand and enhance China’s social development landscape.

Measurement of agricultural productivity and levels of development in the Malaprabha river basin, Karnataka, India

The present paper attempts to analyze the spatial patterns of agricultural productivity and assess regional disparities in the levels of agricultural development in the Malaprabha river basin, Karnataka state. The Malaprabha river basin is one of the natural regions, with agriculture being the lifeline activity of the inhabitants of the basin. However, surprisingly, the region experiences greater regional disparities in overall development in general and agricultural development in particular. Regional disparities in the river basin may be natural due to unequal distribution of natural resources or man-made in the sense of neglect of some regions and preferences for others for investment and infrastructural facilities, and to some extent, the developmental policies of the region. The present study has utilized the published sources of data and reports collected from the Directorate of Economics and Statistics, Govt. of Karnataka, the Directorate of Census Operations in Karnataka, Govt. of India, Bangalore, and other related statistical records at taluka level at two points in time, i.e., 1993–94 and 2013–14. Though the study area is a natural region, the taluka has been taken as the smallest unit of study. The findings suggest that significant disparities have extensively affected the various aspects of agricultural development in the talukas of the river basin. The areas with a low level of development should be given top priority so that they may come up at par with the developed areas and the concept of planning with social justice may be fulfilled.

TURİZMDƏ SAHİBKARLIQ RİSKLƏRİ

Risks of Entrepreneurship in Tourism Summary Entrepreneurship is a matter of great importance in the economic, political, social and cultural development of countries. Many institutions and organizations, especially the public sector, are making special efforts for the development and popularization of entrepreneurship around the world. National governments know that they cannot deal with the big problems of employment, economic growth, national income per capita, poverty reduction, regional development disparities and related migration with only public resources. At this point, the creation of a strong entrepreneurial ecosystem comes to the fore. The great attention paid to entrepreneurship today has increased research in this field and enriched the literature. Entrepreneurship was initially explained as a basic concept, but now many types of entrepreneurship are mentioned under this heading. However, the concepts and discussions developed about entrepreneurship seem to focus mainly on the manufacturing and technology industries and do not cover much of the service sector. The purpose of this study is to discuss tourism entrepreneurship, to reveal its characteristics through research and to contribute to the broader discussion. Key words: entrepreneurship, tourism, tourism entrepreneurship, green tourism, innovation

Growth Models and Influencing Mechanisms of Total Factor Productivity in China’s National High-Tech Zones

Total factor productivity (TFP) serves as a crucial indicator of high-quality development, showcasing a region’s utilization of technological advancements and innovative strategies to enhance production efficiency. With China’s regions experiencing varying levels of development, the paths to high-quality development in NHTZs also exhibit significant disparities. Analyzing data from 88 NHTZs between 2011 and 2018, this research aims to explore differences in TFP growth models and the mechanisms influencing these models. Employing stochastic frontier analysis (SFA) and the Tobit model, the study identifies three TFP growth models: technology-led, multi-efficiency improvement, and scale efficiency compensation. While factors such as capital accumulation, overseas market participation, and patent output moderately hinder TFP growth, innovation platforms, R&D investment, and overseas talent acquisition significantly contribute to TFP enhancement. Distinguishing itself from existing TFP studies, this paper focuses on NHTZs, highlighting their role in regional high-tech industry development. It introduces three TFP growth models and their characteristics while also uncovering influencing factors for each model. This research offers valuable insights into regional disparities in high-quality development and contributes to understanding TFP growth dynamics in NHTZs.

Governmentality Perspective as a Contemporary Strategy for Rural Community Development in Nigeria

This study delves into the intricate dynamics of governmentality in the context of rural community development in Nigeria. It examines diverse participant perceptions of governmentality initiatives, highlighting the influence of socio-cultural and economic contexts. The research also assesses the impact of these initiatives on rural development outcomes, emphasizing improvements in infrastructure, community engagement, and socio-economic conditions. Challenges, including resource constraints and transparency issues, are explored, along with the pivotal role of community participation and effective communication. The findings underscore the significance of contextspecific approaches, community involvement, and addressing regional disparities in rural development. The study provides valuable insights for policymakers and practitioners, advocating for nuanced strategies that account for the unique characteristics of Nigeria’s rural communities. Recommendations encompass tailored approaches, transparency, capacity building, resource mobilization, and cultural preservation. By heeding these recommendations, stakeholders can enhance the effectiveness of governmentality-oriented initiatives, fostering sustainable and equitable development across diverse regions.

Spatial and temporal analysis of regional disparities in educational development with in National Capital and Non-National Capital Regions of Haryana

Education is an essential indicator to assess the social, cultural and financial progress of a society to improve the quality of life at local, national and global levels. It is mandatory for every citizen of the nation to avoid ignorance and backwardness. Therefore, the importance of education for humans is continuously increasing. Development in the field of education has become essential for social and economic development so that the quality of life of the people can be improved. These disparities can be seen and measured across various indicators of development. On the basis of this objective, in the present research paper, various indicators of Haryana like total number of schools per lakh population of primary, secondary, senior secondary schools in the national capital and non-national capital region have been analyzed by Human Development Index to assess the regional disparity. The composite index method has been used. For the present study, data of the years 1991-92, 2001-02 and 2011-12 have been used. The data related to the study has been obtained from the Statistics Department of Haryana.
 Abstract in Hindi Language: 
 शिक्षा स्थानीय ,राष्ट्रीय और वैश्विक स्तर पर जीवन की गुणवता को उन्नत करने के लिए समाज की सामाजिक , सांस्कृतिक और वित्तीय उन्नति का आंकलन के लिए एक आवश्यक संकेतक है । यह राष्ट्र के प्रत्येक नागरिक के लिए अज्ञानता और पिछड़ेपन से बचाव के लिए अनिवार्य है । अतः मनुष्य के लिए शिक्षा का महत्व निरंतर बढ़ता जा रहा है । सामाजिक और आर्थिक विकास हेतु शिक्षा के क्षेत्र में विकास अनिवार्य हो गया है ताकि लोगो के जीवन की गुणवत्ता में सुधार हो सके । इन विषमताओं को विकास के विभिन्न संकेतकों के बीच देखा और मापा जा सकता है । इसी उद्देश्य के आधार पर वर्तमान शोधपत्र में हरियाणा के विभिन्न संकेतकों जैसे प्राथमिक,माध्यमिक,उच्चध्वरिष्ठ माध्यमिक विद्यालय की प्रति लाख जनसँख्या पर कुल विद्यालय संख्या का राष्ट्रीय राजधानी और गैर -राष्ट्रीय राजधानी क्षेत्र में प्रादेशिक विषमता के आंकलन के लिए मानव विकास सूचकांक द्वारा दी गयी समग्र सूचकांक विधि का उपयोग किया गया है ।वर्तमान अध्ययन हेतु सन 1991-92, 2001-02 और 2011-12 के आंकड़ों का प्रयोग किया गया है । अध्ययन से सम्बन्धित आंकड़े हरियाणा के सांख्यिकी विभाग सार से प्राप्त किये गये है ।
 Keywords: विकास ,समग्र सूचकांक विधि, प्रादेशिक विषमता , मानव विकास सूचकांक ,राष्ट्रीय ,गैर -राष्ट्रीय राजधानी

Reserve holding and bank lending

Banks’ ability to convert liquidity into lending depends crucially on the various regulatory constraints they face. This paper investigates the differential lending responses of banks with varying levels of reserves, and their impact on the real economy. The distribution of reserves within the banking system became significantly more dispersed during the quantitative easing (QE) periods. Loan growth for those more liquidity-constrained does not vary meaningfully with liquidity changes, despite abundance at the aggregate level. Consequently, our findings imply that the uneven bank reserve distribution may exacerbate the spatial disparities in bank lending and regional economic development through differential lending responses of banks in different parts of the reserve distribution.

Spatial disparities and internal subsystems'coupling coordination analysis of green development in Chinese animal husbandry.

This study establishes an indicator system encompassing economic, social, and environmental dimensions to assess the level of green development in animal husbandry from 2010 to 2020. It further examines the coupling coordination degree within each dimension. The Dagum Gini coefficient is employed to scrutinize the regional disparities in coupling coordination degree of the economic benefit, social benefit, and environmental benefit of the green development in Chinese animal husbandry. Additionally, Moran's I is utilized to identify the degree of spatial autocorrelation and aggregation types. The results demonstrate the following: (1) From 2010 to 2020, the level of green development in the animal husbandry in China has steadily improved. Among the three dimensions, economic benefits exhibit the highest performance, followed by environmental benefits and social benefits. There are obvious regional disparities in the green development of animal husbandry, which are "strong in north and weak in south" and "strong in west and weak in east." The Gini coefficient for green development in the animal husbandry in China experienced a fluctuating upward trend. (2) From 2010 to 2020, the overall coupling coordination degree of the economic benefit, social benefit, and environmental benefit of green development in the animal husbandry in China remains at a rudimentary level and demonstrates a steady upward trend. Spatially, it manifests an agglomeration pattern primarily centered around Beijing, with the northeastern region being the main focus. (3) The Gini coefficient for the coupling coordination degree experienced a slight fluctuating upward trend. In terms of inter-regional disparities, significant differences are observed between the northeastern region and the central region, as well as between the northeastern region and the eastern region. In terms of contribution to disparities, inter-regional contributions were the most substantial, followed by super-variable density, with intra-regional contributions being the smallest. (4) The coupling coordination degree displayed spatial autocorrelation, with "high-high" aggregation areas predominantly concentrated in the northeastern region.

Path analysis of regional logistics and economy coordinated development: An fsQCA approach.

The coordinated development of regional logistics and the economy is crucial for regional economic progress and for reducing regional development disparities. This study applies regional coordinated development theory and coupling theory, utilizing the Coupling Coordination Degree Model (CCDM) to analyze data from 31 provinces and cities in China in 2021, with the analysis results serving as the outcome variable. Additionally, we use data from four dimensions: infrastructure investment (II), technological innovation (TI), industrial structure (IS), and human capital (HC), as the conditional variables, conducting a multi-factor configurational analysis using fsQCA. Three paths with high coupling coordination and one path with non-high coupling coordination are identified, and the reasons for each path are analyzed. The results indicate that: 1) there are significant regional disparities in China regarding economic development, logistics development, and the degree of their coupling and coordination, with the eastern regions exhibiting higher levels and the western regions and other remote areas exhibiting lower levels. 2) The three paths with high coupling coordination are: "Infrastructure Investment-Technological Innovation", "Technological Innovation-Industrial Structure-Human Capital", and "Infrastructure Investment-Fundamental Innovation-Industrial Structure". These three types facilitate the well-coordinated progress of regional logistics and the economy. The article concludes by highlighting policy suggestions that underscore the significance of fortifying the bond between the logistics industry and the economy, alongside earnest efforts to enhance regional logistics standards. This will foster a mutually reinforcing and co-developing situation, further promoting coordinated development among regions, achieving high-quality regional development, and reducing the imbalances in logistics and economic development among different regions.

Türkiye’de Yatırım Teşviklerinin Bölgesel Gelişmişlik Farklarını Azaltma Konusunda Etkinliği

This study aims to determine to what extent the investment incentive system implemented in Türkiye effectively reduces regional development disparities. For this purpose, more than 100,000 investment incentive certificates issued between 2001-2022 are examined. The Logarithm Methodology of Additive Weights (LMAW) determines the criteria's importance and ranks the provinces' investment performances. The results obtained indicate that investment incentive applications cannot provide sufficient effectiveness in reducing regional development disparities. In this respect, there is a severe need for revision in the incentive policies currently implemented.

Digital divide reflections on regional development disparities in Türkiye

ABSTRACT This paper addresses the ‘Digital Divide' concerning disparities in adopting information and communication technologies (ICTs) at the regional level in Türkiye. Acknowledging the multiscale dimension of the digital divide, two main research questions are addressed: (1) Is there a digital divide between regions in Türkiye? If so, (2) How does the digital divide affect the development disparities in Türkiye? The ICT Development Index (IDI) and Socio-Economic Development Index (SEDI) are utilized together to answer these questions. Results reveal a positive correlation between them and significant discrepancies between Türkiye‘s eastern and western regions. Remarkably, the digitalization gap is narrower than the socio-economic development gap. The findings suggest that while digital technologies have diffused rapidly in Türkiye, their socio-economic benefits have been absorbed more slowly. This study aims to contribute to the literature on the digital divide and information and communication technology for development (ICT4D) at the regional level, providing insights for policymakers to address regional digital inequalities in Türkiye.

Research on the Impact of Heterogeneous Environmental Regulation on the Coordinated Development of China’s Water–Energy–Food System from a Spatial Perspective

Water resources, energy, and food are fundamental resources for ensuring human social development. The coordinated development of these resources contributes to improving the quality of the social environment, promoting harmony between humans and nature, and achieving economic, social, and ecological sustainability. This study utilizes panel data from 30 provinces in China from 2003 to 2020. Using a coupled coordination degree model, the coupling coordination degree of the Water–Energy–Food (WEF) system is calculated, and the spatiotemporal evolution and social network connections of WEF coupling coordination are analyzed. The spatial Durbin model is employed to investigate the spatial spillover effects of heterogeneous environmental regulation on the coordinated development of the WEF system. The mechanism model is used to explore the pathways through which heterogeneous environmental regulation influences the coordinated development of the WEF system. The results of this study demonstrate that the coupling coordination index of China’s provincial-level WEF system has shown a steady upward trend, except for a slight decline in a few years. Over the research period, there has been a significant improvement in regional coupling coordination levels. There are large differences in the level of WEF coupling coordination among different regions, with a distribution pattern of south > north and east > west. Both formal and informal environmental regulations have significant positive effects on the coupling coordination development of the WEF system, as well as significant positive spatial spillover effects. Formal environmental regulation has a stronger impact compared to informal environmental regulation. Foreign direct investment and industrial structural upgrading are important pathways for environmental regulation to promote the coordinated development of the WEF system. Both formal and informal environmental regulations can promote the coordinated development of the WEF system by facilitating foreign direct investment and industrial structural upgrading. This study not only provides important scientific evidence and decision-making references for policymakers in formulating environmental regulation policies but also offers new evidence support for the theory of regional development disparities.

Research on the Spatial Dynamic Evolution of Digital Agriculture—Evidence from China

Digital agriculture serves as a pivotal means of ushering in innovative agricultural practices and achieving sustainable agricultural development. Although agricultural digitalization has received increasing attention, the unbalanced development and regional disparities of digital agriculture are still key obstacles to sustainable agricultural development. Based on the data of 31 provinces in China from 2013 to 2021, this study evaluates the development level of digital agriculture in China, and further analyzes the distribution pattern, spatial characteristics, and transition probabilities of digital agriculture from a regional perspective. The index system of the digital agriculture development level is constructed from five aspects: infrastructure, talent resources, agricultural informatization, the digitization of agricultural production processes, and agricultural production efficiency. Among these, infrastructure and talent resources reflect the resources needed for the development of digital agriculture; agricultural informatization and the digitization of the agricultural production process indicate the role of digitization in the process of agricultural development; and the agricultural production efficiency is the goal of the digital agriculture development, which is a critical criteria of its evaluation. The weighted analysis method of objective sequential analysis, which combines the dynamic level of indicators and sequential relationships, is used to assign weights to the indicators. In addition, to address the regional disparities in the development level of digital agriculture, kernel density estimation, Moran’s index, and (spatial) Markov chain analysis are applied to analyze the spatial dynamic evolution of digital agriculture in China. The findings reveal substantial regional disparities in digital agriculture development within China, particularly in the Western region, where development lags behind. Moreover, this study offers actionable policy recommendations for policymakers to strengthen regional infrastructure and talent cultivation, as well as other aspects of digital agriculture development, to mitigate regional differences and provide reference for other emerging countries.