Can the development of digital government improve agricultural economic resilience? Evidence from China’s information benefitting the people policy

Introduction Against the backdrop of escalating climate change and compounded disruptions in global supply chains, enhancing agricultural economic resilience has emerged as a critical development imperative. However, whether the advancement of digital government can effectively strengthen agricultural economic resilience remains an unresolved empirical question that necessitates rigorous causal identification. Methods Based on a panel dataset of Chinese cities from 2011 to 2022, a multi-period difference-in-differences (DID) model is employed to identify the policy’s effects. Results The results indicate that the implementation of the information benefitting the people policy significantly enhances agricultural economic resilience. The underlying mechanisms lie in the promotion of technological innovation, agricultural land mechanization, and industrial agglomeration within the agricultural sector. However, a lagged negative effect on resilience begins to emerge from the third phase after policy implementation. Heterogeneity analysis further reveals that the positive impacts are more pronounced in regions such as the Pearl River Delta urban agglomeration, other resource-based cities, non-major grain-producing areas, and cities along the Yangtze River. Conclusions The findings suggest that the implementation of the information benefitting the people policy plays a significant role in enhancing agricultural economic resilience, although a lagged negative effect emerges from the third phase after policy implementation.