The Impact of Modern Agricultural Parks on Regional Agricultural Economic Growth: A Case Study of Modern Agricultural Parks in Southwest China

The level of agricultural economic development is a critical indicator for assessing the achievements of rural revitalization and the construction of a modern agricultural power. How to elevate agricultural economic standards remains a significant challenge for China today. This study treats modern agricultural parks as a quasi-natural experiment and employs a multi-period difference-in-differences (DID) model to analyze panel data from 98 modern agricultural parks in southwest China, aiming to explore whether the construction of modern agricultural parks can influence regional agricultural economic growth. The findings demonstrate that the establishment of modern agricultural parks significantly enhances the level of agricultural economic development. This effect remains robust after conducting parallel trend tests, placebo tests, and propensity score matching (PSM)-DID checks. Further mechanism analysis reveals that such parks drive agricultural economic growth through innovations in agricultural technology. Additionally, heterogeneity analysis indicates that the policy effect of modern agricultural parks varies across regions, with stronger impacts observed in areas with moderate development levels compared to less developed regions. These research findings provide valuable insights for accelerating the construction of a socialist modern agricultural power in the new era and offer a theoretical foundation for advancing the modernization of agriculture and rural areas.