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Impacts of Rural Labor Resource Change on the Technical Efficiency of Crop Production in China

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  • Ning Yin

    (College of Economics & Management, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China)

  • Yapeng Wang

    (College of Economics & Management, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China)

Abstract

This paper probes effects of the evolvement of labor resources on technical efficiency in crop production in rural China. Based on twelve years of data on crop production of 30 provinces in China, a stochastic frontier production function model is used to measure crop production efficiency in three crop-functional areas—the production area, the consumption area, and the balanced area. Then effects of both quantity and quality change in labor force on technical efficiency in different regions of China are analyzed. Results show that rural China generally has an increasing number of employees shifted to non-agricultural sectors and a decreasing trend of the stock of human capital. However, both these two changes in rural labor force have significantly positive effects on improving crop production efficiency. In addition, China’s technical inefficiency is at an average of 22.2%. Dynamically, the technical efficiencies show a tendency to rise steadily throughout China and in three areas, while the consumption area possesses the highest technical efficiency. Those results may lend some experience for other countries that are currently experiencing rural labor force and economic transition.

Suggested Citation

  • Ning Yin & Yapeng Wang, 2017. "Impacts of Rural Labor Resource Change on the Technical Efficiency of Crop Production in China," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 7(3), pages 1-12, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jagris:v:7:y:2017:i:3:p:26-:d:92813
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    3. Nith, Kosal & Ly, Singhong, 2018. "Reinvigorating Cambodian agriculture: Transforming from extensive to intensive agriculture," MPRA Paper 93086, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 23 Dec 2018.
    4. Valentina Constanta Tudor & Toma Adrian Dinu & Marius Vladu & Dragoș Smedescu & Ionela Mituko Vlad & Eduard Alexandru Dumitru & Cristina Maria Sterie & Carmen Luiza Costuleanu, 2022. "Labour Implications on Agricultural Production in Romania," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(14), pages 1-22, July.
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    6. Xiuqing Zou & Meihui Xie & Zhiyuan Li & Kaifeng Duan, 2022. "Spatial Spillover Effect of Rural Labor Transfer on the Eco-Efficiency of Cultivated Land Use: Evidence from China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(15), pages 1-17, August.

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