DOI: 10.17026/dans-zuu-acaw
title: Research on the Impact of Rural Housing Improvement Policies on Farmers' Livelihood Strategies in Northern Jiangsu

description: The speed and level of development of China's rural areas have been lagging behind that of cities, and in recent years, the gap between urban and rural areas has shown a trend of further widening. In order to narrow the gap between urban and rural development and help rural development, in October 2017, the report of the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China clearly put forward the implementation of the rural revitalization strategy. Jiangsu is a relatively developed coastal province, but there are also problems of unbalanced urban and rural development and insufficient rural development. This is more obvious in the rural areas of northern Jiangsu, which are manifested in the relatively large number of dilapidated and old houses in rural areas, the relatively scattered layout of rural houses, and the relatively poor overall rural environment. Some villages show problems such as lack of popularity, lack of vitality, and lack of vitality. In order to thoroughly implement the rural revitalization strategy, meet the urgent requirements of the people for a better life, and effectively improve the rural living environment in northern Jiangsu, in September 2018, the Jiangsu Provincial Party Committee and the provincial government decided to launch the northern Jiangsu farm house improvement policy, and the dilapidated and old houses will be improved. Improve the houses of farmers who have a strong desire for housing improvement, improve the living conditions of farmers, make the rural people in northern Jiangsu live in a concentrated way according to the law of urbanization, promote large-scale agricultural operations, promote the transfer of rural labor to non-agricultural employment, and allow farmers to live in rural areas. Live a modern life in sync with the times.As of the end of 2021, the northern Jiangsu rural housing improvement policy has initially achieved the goal of improving 300,000 rural houses in three years. However, as a livelihood project that Jiangsu Province has been promoting for many years, what is the impact of the rural housing improvement policy in northern Jiangsu on farmers' livelihoodstrategies in reality, such as: whether it has a role in promoting farmers' land transfer, and whether it has promoted farmers' local work. Existing research has not carried out a specific effect test on the rural housing improvement policies in northern Jiangsu, and the impact on farmers' livelihood strategies is still unknown. Therefore, studying the impact of rural housing improvement policies in northern Jiangsu on farmers' livelihood strategies will not only help to initially grasp the current policy promotion effect, but also help to formulate rural housing improvement policies in the next stage.Based on the theory of sustainable livelihoods and the theory of farmers' behavior, this paper constructs an analytical framework of "livelihood capital → rural housing improvement policies in northern Jiangsu → livelihood strategies". The propensity score matching method is used to empirically test the impact of rural housing improvement policies in northern Jiangsu on farmers' livelihood strategies, and the robustness test and sensitivity analysis of the research results are carried out. Finally, on the basis of theoretical interpretation and empirical analysis, corresponding policy suggestions are proposed.The research results of this paper are as follows: (1) The degree of fragmentation of cultivated land, availability of credit, the proportion of houses that have been identified as dilapidated, and the proportion of improved farm houses significantly promotes farmers to participate in the policy of improving farm houses in northern Jiangsu, the possession of production materials and the distance to the town center have a significant inhibitory effect on farmers' participation in the rural housing improvement policy in northern Jiangsu. (2) The rural housing improvement policy in northern Jiangsu has no significant impact on farmers' decision to transfer farmland in and out. (3) The rural housing improvement policy in northern Jiangsu has a significant inhibitory effect on local business tools. The proportion of rural households participating in local labor in the improved households is significantly lower than that of the unimproved households participating in local labor, indicating that the absorption effect of local labor on farmers in the sample area is not strong.According to the above research conclusions, the corresponding policy suggestions are put forward: (1) Promote farmers' participation in the rural housing improvement policy in northern Jiangsu in multiple ways. ① Implement various forms of financial loans for rural housing improvement to increase the financial capital of rural households. Combined with the needs of farmers' land transfer, various forms of financial credit products are issued to meet the capital needs of farmers to purchase agricultural machinery and other means of production in terms of land transfer in rural housing improvement areas. adaptability. ②Strengthen policy guidance and further promote the improvement of dilapidated houses. Give full play to the influence and appeal of the grassroots, count the number and distribution of dilapidated houses in the jurisdiction, and promote the improvement policy of rural houses in northern Jiangsu, so that the farmers of dilapidated houses can fully understand the benefits of participating in the rural housing policy and the assistance of the government, and reduce their ideological burden and economic pressure, and on the premise of respecting the wishes of farmers, stimulate the enthusiasm and initiative of farmers to voluntarily participate in the farm house improvement policy. This is not only conducive to improving the living conditions of farmers, but also conducive to promoting the progress of rural house improvement in villages, starting from the improvement of dilapidated houses, and increasing the participation rate of farmers in the rural house improvement policy. ③ Develop socialized agricultural machinery services and encourage farmers to withdraw from idle agricultural machinery. Support and guide social organizations to provide agricultural machinery social services, and enhance their social service capabilities through policy support and skills training; establish agricultural machinery social service platforms, improve the intensity of agricultural machinery service information, and reduce the cost of farmers looking for agricultural machinery services; establish The agricultural machinery withdrawal mechanism encourages farmers to withdraw or transfer idle or less-used agricultural machinery, so that agricultural machinery social services can replace farmers' own agricultural machinery as much as possible, reduce farmers' concerns about agricultural machinery storage, and promote their participation in farm house improvement policies. (2) Accelerate the development of township industries and promote "employment at the doorstep of farmers". In the process of improving rural houses in northern Jiangsu in the later period, in addition to accelerating the demolition of rural houses and the construction of new rural communities, we should further accelerate the construction of infrastructure and industrial supporting facilities to cultivate soil for industrial development; promote the improvement of rural houses in northern Jiangsu Combining policies and industry introduction, strengthen publicity and policy support, actively introduce enterprises, make local industries form a scale as soon as possible, and firmly take root in townships; attract local farmers for employment, and strive to create more and more surplus labor for farmers participating in the improvement of farm houses. Good local and nearby jobs will enable the township industry to continue to grow and enable farmers to find employment in their own townships. At the same time, according to the actual needs of small towns and new rural communities in terms of management and sanitation, the government should actively increase public welfare jobs and provide channels for low-income people to find employment.