ECONOMETRIC ANALYSIS ON THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN AGRI-TOURISM DEVELOPMENT AND ECONOMIC GROWTH - THE CASE OF CENTRAL PLAINS ECONOMIC ZONE OF CHINA
Authors: YANG CHEN , LUKASH SVITLANA , QINGRAN GUO 
Published: January 2020

The main problem for farmers in China is the search for possible ways to maximize income. Especially relevant today is tourism, which has a broad reach and deep connections with many fields of the national economy. Agritourism in China has recently undergone significant development, expansion and renewal. As part of the Belt and Road Initiative, active rural development and other activities are being undertaken to improve a promising investment environment for tourism. The development of tourism products that integrated with the agricultural sector is becoming a promising form of cooperation with the rural population in the future. Eco-agriculture tourism is a new direction for farmers. The development of eco-agriculture not only contributes to the optimization and adaptation of the agricultural structure, increasing in the added value of agricultural products, but also contributes to the development of services, economic and technological cooperation, the exchange and inflow of funds into the country's economy. It is a new way of strengthening the connection between urban and rural areas, improving the general condition of farmers, developing agricultural infrastructure and creating a harmonious environment between man and nature.
As the development of the Central Plains Economic Zone has become part of a national strategy, the development of tourism in the Central Plains Economic Zone has a great potential. In the Central Plains, where natural conditions are better, the development of a local agro-tourism economy as a starting point can greatly increase farmers' incomes, since the development of agritourism can promote the development of related industries and facilitate the optimization and modernization of industrial structures. This can improve infrastructure, save farmers 'production costs, increase farmers' employment. The transfer of surplus agricultural labor may also contribute to the realization of a harmonious sustainable economic and environmental development. Taking as an example the economic zone of the Central Plains, the main task of this article is to study the relationship between the development of ecological-agricultural tourism and economic growth, which substantiates the new trend of national economic development. This article regards the Central Plains Economic Zone as a research object and uses the econometric method of analyzing and examining the relationship between tourism development and economic growth in the Central Plains Economic Zone. Eco-farming is a new outlet for farmers. The development of eco-agricultural tourism will not only help to optimize and adjust the structure of agriculture, increase the added value of agricultural products, but will also promote the development of services, economic and technological cooperation, attract additional investments, will also promote the development of catering, hospitality, economy tourism products and real estate, thus contributing to the growth of agriculture as a whole. To analyze the source of economic growth, we need to know the main driving force behind economic growth. Neoclassical economic theory argues that economic growth depends on three factors: labor, capital, and technological progress. The main model of economic growth is the production function of Cobb-Douglas with the addition of variable income from tourism. Stata software was used for empirical analysis of the model.
Keywords: agritourism, sustainable development, economic growth, environment, social development, economic development.