Digital infrastructure and intra-provincial balanced development: Evidence from China's provincial panel data

Area of Science:

• Economics
• Regional Science
• Information Technology

Background:

• Unbalanced regional development is a major obstacle to global economic growth.
• Existing research often overlooks intra-provincial disparities, focusing instead on inter-provincial inequalities.
• A gap exists in understanding regional imbalances within single provinces.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess intra-provincial regional balanced development in China using urban-level indicators.
• To investigate the impact of digital infrastructure on balanced regional development within provinces.
• To identify the mechanisms and heterogeneity of this relationship.

Main Methods:

• Utilized provincial panel data from 2013 to 2022.
• Employed a fixed-effect regression model to analyze the impact of digital infrastructure.
• Conducted robustness tests, including instrumental variables and analysis of variable lag effects.

Main Results:

• Digital infrastructure significantly promotes balanced regional development within provinces.
• Technological innovation and industrial structure upgrading were identified as key mediating mechanisms.
• The positive impact was more pronounced in regions with higher urbanization levels, while financial development showed no significant heterogeneity.

Conclusions:

• Digital infrastructure is a crucial driver for achieving balanced regional development at the intra-provincial level.
• Policy recommendations emphasize leveraging digital infrastructure to foster equitable development across regions.
• Targeted strategies considering urbanization levels are recommended for maximizing the benefits of digital infrastructure.