| 李培,蔡竹欣,鲁建坤.财政转移支付与边境包容性增长挑战：来自兴边富民行动的经验证据[J].数量经济技术经济研究,2025,(11):25-46 | | 财政转移支付与边境包容性增长挑战：来自兴边富民行动的经验证据 | | Fiscal Transfers and the Challenge of Inclusive Growth in Border Regions: Empirical Evidence from Vitalizing Border Areas and Enriching the People Initiative | | | | DOI： | | 中文关键词: 财政转移支付 包容性增长 兴边富民行动 | | 英文关键词: Fiscal Transfers Inclusive Growth Vitalizing Border Areas and Enriching the People Initiative | | 基金项目: | | | 中文摘要: | | 边民富则边境固，提升财政转移支付在促进边境包容性增长中的治理效能意义重大。本文利用中央财政转移支付支持的兴边富民行动这一准自然实验，系统评估了财政转移支付对推动边境经济增长及共享政策红利的实际效能与传导机制。研究发现，兴边富民行动促进了边境县的整体经济发展，但群体间收入出现分化，工人平均工资显著提升，而农村居民人均纯收入增长乏力。机制分析表明，上述现象源于边境县财政支出结构偏重非直接涉农的经济支出、依赖非农产业发展带动区域经济增长，以及产业间劳动力流动性有限。异质性分析显示，中央监督敦促、省级治理特征和基层执行能力显著影响政策效果向农村居民群体的传导，可作为提升政策效能的关键切入点。本研究揭示了财政转移支付政策在增长和分配双重维度上的作用机理，为优化边境地区财政支持体系、提升包容性增长水平提供了理论依据和政策启示。 | | 英文摘要: | | Promoting inclusive growth in China’s border regions is critical for national stability and long-term development. Despite sustained policy attention and substantial fiscal resources, border areas face persistent challenges, particularly the limited economic gains experienced by rural populations. Therefore, addressing the issue of how fiscal policy can support inclusive development in these regions is of both academic and practical importance.Chinese policymakers have recognized that effective border governance is fundamental to national security and cohesion. In response to the structural disadvantages faced by border regions, the central government launched the Vitalizing Border Areas and Enriching the People (VBEP) initiative, channeling fiscal transfers to boost local economies and improve residents’ livelihoods. While these efforts have primarily prioritized economic support for border counties, there are still concerns about whether the benefits of these substantial fiscal transfers are broadly and equitably shared across all segments of the population. Understanding whether these initiatives promote inclusive growth is a critical yet underexamined issue.This study seeks to address this significant gap by providing empirical insights into the distributive effects of fiscal interventions.This study examines the impact of the VBEP initiative on inclusive growth in China’s border counties. Utilizing county-level panel data from 1997 to 2006 and applying both difference-in-differences and regression discontinuity-in-differences methods, the analysis reveals that the VBEP initiative significantly improved economic performance in border counties, with per capita GDP increasing by 13.087%. The result demonstrates the effectiveness of fiscal transfers in promoting aggregate economic growth. Notably, the policy led to a marked rise in the average wage of workers. However, our findings indicate no statistically significant improvement in the per capita net income of rural residents, highlighting a divergence in income gains between different social groups and revealing a critical limitation in the policy’s inclusiveness.Mechanism analysis reviews that this divergence is primarily due to a fiscal expenditure structure that predominantly favors nonagricultural economic activities and places greater emphasis on the nonfarm sector as the engine of local growth. Moreover, agricultural modernization and rural income growth fell behind, and labor mobility across sectors was constrained. Thus, the distribution of fiscal dividends disproportionately favored nonagricultural groups over rural households.The study also finds that governance factors have a strong influence on the effectiveness of fiscal transfers in reaching rural residents. More central supervision, better provincial administrative capacity, and more effective local implementation are associated with improved policy outcomes for disadvantaged groups. These governance factors shape the extent to which fiscal resources translate into equitable and inclusive outcomes, emphasizing the importance of institutional capacity in maximizing the distributional effectiveness of fiscal policies.This study makes three contributions to the literature. First, it evaluates the effects of fiscal transfer policy from both growth and distribution perspectives, highlighting the presence and origins of unequal income gains. Second, it examines the channels through which budgetary resource allocation and industrial development strategies result in differentiated impacts across social groups. Third, it incorporates a multi-level governance framework to demonstrate how the characteristics of central, provincial, and local governments shape the transmission and effectiveness of fiscal policies.The findings prove that while fiscal transfers can promote economic development in remote and underdeveloped regions, the structure of expenditure and the effectiveness of governance are essential for ensuring that all groups genuinely benefit. We make the following policy recommendations: emphasize the importance of refining fiscal support mechanisms, increase direct investment in rural and agricultural development, and strengthen coordination and implementation across government levels. These improvements are crucial for achieving more inclusive growth and enhancing the resilience and stability of China’s border regions. By addressing structural expenditure biases and improving governance capacities, policymakers can foster genuinely inclusive economic growth that benefits marginalized rural populations. | | 查看全文 相关附件： 下载数据代码附录 |
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