The impact of public data access on the transformation of resource-based cities from the perspective of new quality productive forces

• Published in: Zi yuan ke xue Vol. 46; no. 10; pp. 1895 - 1911
• Main Authors: Bo, LI, Duohan, LIANG, Jianhui, YU
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: Chinese; English
• Published: Science Press, PR China 01-10-2024
• Subjects: resource-based cities|new quality productive forces|public data access|transformation efficiency|difference-in-differences model|china
• ISSN: 1007-7588
• DOI: 10.18402/resci.2024.10.01

[Objective] Public data access is a crucial measure to unlock the value of digital resources, offering resource-based cities new opportunities to accelerate their transformation. Unveiling its impact on transformation efficiency and the underlying mechanisms provides a scientific basis for promoting the high-quality development of resource-based cities from the perspective of new quality productive forces. [Methods] This study treated the construction of data access platforms by local governments as a quasi-natural experiment, and used panel data from 114 resource-based cities in China from 2006 to 2021. A non-radial directional distance function was employed to measure transformation efficiency, considering the scenario where capital, labor, land, technology, and energy inputs are variable, as well as an alternative scenario where only energy input is variable. A multi-period difference-in-differences model was used to examine the effects and mechanisms of public data access on the transformation of resource-based cities from the perspective of new quality productive forces to ensure the accuracy of the results. [Results] (1) The study found that public data access resulted in an average improvement of 5.1% in the transformation efficiency of resource-based cities with all five inputs variable, and a 5.8% improvement under the alternative scenario, thereby significantly expediting the transformation of these cities. This conclusion remained valid after endogeneity treatment and robustness tests. (2) Mechanism analysis revealed that public data access facilitated the transformation of resource-based cities through three channels: green technology innovation, enhanced synergistic agglomeration of manufacturing and productive services, and the perfection of digital financial services. (3) Heterogeneity analysis indicated that the public data access had a more pronounced effect on the improvement of transformation efficiency in resource-based cities located in the central region, in the regeneration stage, and belonging to the old industrial base. [Conclusion] The key role of data access in introducing data elements into the transformation of resource-based cities should be emphasized. Actively leveraging the important role of data platforms in technological innovation, industrial development, and financial services provision could help resource-based cities develop new quality productive forces and transform towards high-quality development.