The Impact of Digital Rural Construction on Narrowing the Urban-Rural Income Gap

Chengzhao Wu; Wei Wan

doi:10.6918/IJOSSER.202606_9(6).0011

Authors

Chengzhao Wu
Wei Wan

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.6918/IJOSSER.202606_9(6).0011

Keywords:

Digital village; Urban-rural income gap; Theil index; Urban-rural dual structure.

Abstract

As a core strategy for advancing agricultural and rural modernization and breaking the urban-rural dual structure in the digital economy era, the implementation effects and impact mechanisms of digital rural construction have become key concerns in both academic research and policy making. Based on panel data from 41 prefecture-level cities in the Yangtze River Delta region covering 2014–2023, this study constructs a comprehensive evaluation index system for digital rural development using the entropy method, and empirically examines its influence on the urban-rural income gap with a two-way fixed-effects model. The results show that digital rural construction can significantly reduce the urban-rural income disparity. This effect is mainly transmitted through two intermediate channels: raising the comparative labor productivity of agriculture and improving the average educational attainment of rural residents. Further analysis indicates that digital inclusive finance and digital governance capacity play particularly prominent roles in narrowing the income gap. Meanwhile, the income convergence effect of digital rural construction is more pronounced in resource-based cities, low-income regions, and areas with a relatively high share of agriculture.

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