New Technological Knowledge, Rural and Urban Agriculture, and Steady State Economic Growth

Batabyal, Amitrajeet and Kourtit, Karima and Nijkamp, Peter (2018): New Technological Knowledge, Rural and Urban Agriculture, and Steady State Economic Growth.

Abstract

We analyze the growth effects over space arising from the adoption of new agricultural technology in a rural-urban setting. We use a dynamic model to study the impacts of technology and learning on the steady state growth rates of rural and urban regions that produce agricultural goods. New applications of agricultural technologies are tested and adopted in the rural region and they are gradually learned by the urban region. Our analysis leads to four results. First, we determine the steady state growth rate of agricultural output per worker in the rural region. Second, we define an urban to rural region agricultural technology knowledge ratio, analyze its stability properties, and then use this ratio to compute the steady state growth rate of agricultural output per worker in the urban region. Third, for specific parameter values, we study the ratio of agricultural output per worker in the urban to the rural region when both regions have converged to their balanced growth paths. Finally, we discuss the policy implications of our analysis.

• Item Type: MPRA Paper
• Language: English
• Keywords: Economic Growth, Learning, Rural Region, Technology, Urban Region
• Subjects: O - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth > O1 - Economic Development > O18 - Urban, Rural, Regional, and Transportation Analysis ; Housing ; Infrastructure; Q - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics ; Environmental and Ecological Economics > Q1 - Agriculture > Q16 - R&D ; Agricultural Technology ; Biofuels ; Agricultural Extension Services; R - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics > R1 - General Regional Economics > R11 - Regional Economic Activity: Growth, Development, Environmental Issues, and Changes

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