Rurbanomics for common prosperity: new approach to integrated urban-rural development

Abstract

PurposeChallenges from the urban–rural disparity immensely burden the world's progress fulfilling Sustainable Development Goals and the goals' central promise, particularly for developing countries experiencing rapid structural change and urbanization. A knowledge gap lies between the epistemology of urban–rural disparity and the practice of integrated urban-rural development. This paper aims to provide a new approach to bridge the knowledge gap based on the recent Chinese experience.Design/methodology/approachThis qualitative research reviewed major economic and multidisciplinary studies regarding urban-rural development and the growth-equality tradeoff. Chinese experience is employed to showcase concrete challenges from the urban–rural disparity and how the proposed approach works for urban-rural integration.FindingsTheoretical and practical approaches with urban bias largely fail to counter the challenges. Building on China's recent practice probing beyond urban bias, IFPRI (2019) proposes the term rurbanomics with a highlight of equalized urban-rural economic partnership, whereafter Zhou and Chen (2021) enrich the term into a conceptual framework. This paper further improves rurbanomics as a new viable approach to integrated urban-rural development under the overarching goal of common prosperity. The approach prioritizes driving forces in the economic, demographic, eco-environmental, social institutional and technological aspects for the policy community to leverage. Long-term mechanisms are decerned to link urban-rural integration to common prosperity.Practical implicationsChina has leveraged ingredients of the rurbanomics approach in the political deployment to integrated urban-rural development. However, the application of this approach is yet to be adapted with local heterogeneities and live up to application's potential. Long-term mechanisms recommended by the rurbanomics approach will need to be carried out. Future improvements will need substantial theoretical extension and micro-level empirical studies.Originality/valueThis paper streamlines the epistemological shreds regarding pursuits, challenges, global experiences and theoretical approaches of urban-rural development. The paper also develops rurbanomics to navigate urban-rural integration, Sustainable Development Goals and common prosperity. By decerning long-term mechanisms in the Chinese case accordingly, this paper provides clues for other economies to employ the new approach.

Building Climate-Resilient Food Systems in East and South-East Asia: Vulnerabilities, Responses and Financing

“…Women, children, poor people and vulnerable households fare worse with increasing prices for energy and food (especially healthy diet), which are fermented by climate change, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the Russia-Ukraine war [31] . Since informal employment, migrant workers, and most rural population have limited and uncertain access to social security, inequality in income and human capital investment can be further enlarged and therefore burden socioeconomic development in the long run [32,33] . With weakened human capital accumulation in the region, measures for food systems to adapt to and mitigate climate impact become increasingly challenging.…”

“…Resource conservation (e.g., soil, water and biodiversity) and ecosystem restoration (e.g., forest management and land restoration to forestry) can foster long-term food system resilience and the potential of rural added values. Rapid urbanization, income increase and population growth have been generating a large market for premium ecosystem services in rural areas [33] . However, governmental capacities in evaluating, managing, and monitoring ecosystems and eco-environmental resources vary substantially.…”

“…Physical infrastructure, such as roads and ICT facilities, remains the key to livelihoods of food system actors residing in rural areas and marginal communities [67] . Strengthened urban-rural linkages have been stressed as fundamental for farmers to develop added values and for rural vulnerable groups to accumulate human capital [33] . E-commerce has developed in major regional economies before the COVID-19 pandemic and has demonstrated proactive in facilitating urban-rural income growth and leaving no one behind.…”

Common prosperity level evaluation: A comprehensive method based on probabilistic linguistic ordered weighted distance measure, prospect theory, and TOPSIS

“…Originally, it represented absolute egalitarianism. However, in contemporary China, the purpose of common prosperity is to promote fair income distribution and improve people's living standards, which also includes ideas such as sharing and development (Chen et al, 2022 ). In the existing research, some scholars highlight that social progress should simultaneously examine the overall development level and the living conditions of people with low standards of living (Kakwani et al, 2022 ; Zhang J. et al, 2022 ).…”

“…Originally, it represented absolute egalitarianism. However, in contemporary China, the purpose of common prosperity is to promote fair income distribution and improve people's living standards, which also includes ideas such as sharing and development (Chen et al, 2022).…”