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<p>China is currently facing the challenge of unbalanced and inadequate regional development, which constrains the achievement of high-quality growth. Government Seat Relocation Policy (GSRP) may offer a viable solution to this issue. This study utilizes global nighttime light data to calculate regional economic development disparities (REDD) across 269 prefecture-level and above cities in China from 2003 to 2019. The GSRP is treated as a quasi-natural experiment, and a multi-period difference-in-differences model is employed to examine its impact on REDD. The findings reveal that the GSRP significantly narrows REDD, with its effects persisting over the long term. Specifically, the GSRP narrows REDD by fostering industrial production fragmentation, accelerating factor mobility and allocation, improving infrastructure, and stimulating employment and entrepreneurship. Heterogeneity analysis shows that the GSRP has a more pronounced effect in regions with high market segmentation, intense government competition, and in the central areas. This study demonstrates that the GSRP helps reduce intra-city economic development gaps and provides valuable insights for other developing countries aiming to achieve regional balanced development.</p>

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The path to regional coordinated development: unexpected benefits from government seat relocation

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2026年2月24日

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  • Cong Zhang,
  • Zhaojie Han,
  • Chunlai Yuan

摘要

China is currently facing the challenge of unbalanced and inadequate regional development, which constrains the achievement of high-quality growth. Government Seat Relocation Policy (GSRP) may offer a viable solution to this issue. This study utilizes global nighttime light data to calculate regional economic development disparities (REDD) across 269 prefecture-level and above cities in China from 2003 to 2019. The GSRP is treated as a quasi-natural experiment, and a multi-period difference-in-differences model is employed to examine its impact on REDD. The findings reveal that the GSRP significantly narrows REDD, with its effects persisting over the long term. Specifically, the GSRP narrows REDD by fostering industrial production fragmentation, accelerating factor mobility and allocation, improving infrastructure, and stimulating employment and entrepreneurship. Heterogeneity analysis shows that the GSRP has a more pronounced effect in regions with high market segmentation, intense government competition, and in the central areas. This study demonstrates that the GSRP helps reduce intra-city economic development gaps and provides valuable insights for other developing countries aiming to achieve regional balanced development.