Smartphone‐based agricultural extension services and farm incomes: Evidence from Zhejiang Province in China

• Published date: 01 August 2023
• Author: Ni Zhuo,Baozhi Li,Qibiao Zhu,Chen Ji
• Date: 01 August 2023
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1111/rode.13013

SPECIAL ISSUE ARTICLE

Smartphone-based agricultural extension

services and farm incomes: Evidence from

Zhejiang Province in China

Ni Zhuo

1

| Baozhi Li

1

| Qibiao Zhu

1

| Chen Ji

2,3

1

Institute of Rural Development,

Zhejiang Academy of Agricultural

Sciences, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China

2

China Academy for Rural Development

(CARD), Zhejiang University, Hangzhou,

Zhejiang, China

3

Department of Agricultural Economics

and Management, School of Public

Affairs, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou,

Zhejiang, China

Correspondence

Chen Ji, China Academy for Rural

Development (CARD), Department of

Agricultural Economics and Management,

School of Public Affairs, Zhejiang

University, 866 Yuhangtang Road,

Hangzhou, Zhejiang, 310058, China.

Email: jichen@zju.edu.cn

Funding information

National Natural Science Foundation of

China, Grant/Award Number:

72161147001; National Office for

Philosophy and Social Sciences,

Grant/Award Numbers: 21&ZD091,

21&ZD092; The Fundamental Research

Funds for the Central Universities,

Grant/Award Number: S20230068

Abstract

Smartphone use in rural China has grown rapidly,

leading to the fast development of smartphone-based

agricultural extension services. However, there is lim-

ited research on the income effects of smartphone-

based agricultural extension services in rural areas. In

this study, we analyze the causal effects of smartphone-

based agricultural extension services (“Zhe'yang'shi”

WeChat application as an example) on farm incomes

in Zhejiang, China, using a staggered difference-

in-differences method with panel data from 400 crop

farmers. Our results show that adopting smartphone-

based agricultural extension services increases farm

income from soil testing formula fertilizer fields by

15.39% and total farm income by 16.31%.

KEYWORDS

farm incomes, site-specific recommendations, smartphone-

based agricultural extension services, staggered DID method,

“Zhe'yang'shi”

1|INTRODUCTION

The persistent income gap between rural and urban areas in China impedes the realization of

“common prosperity,”which is currently one of the primary economic goals of the country

(China Daily, 2021). Therefore, taking measures to accelerate farmers' income growth is of great

significance in achieving the “common prosperity”objective (China Daily, 2022). The rapid

Received: 30 June 2022 Revised: 15 May 2023 Accepted: 16 May 2023

DOI: 10.1111/rode.13013

Rev Dev Econ. 2023;27:1383–1402. wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/rode © 2023 John Wiley & Sons Ltd. 1383

development of information and communications technology (ICT) in Asia is providing the agri-

culture sector with a promising prospective future, that is, digitalization (Barbier, 2023). Zhejiang

Province, located in Southeast China, is the “common prosperity”demonstration zone as well as

a pioneer in the agricultural digital transformation in China (State Council of China, 2021).

1

The

government has been taking full advantage of ICT to promote rural revitalization (Science and

Technology Department of Zhejiang Province, 2021), and smartphones are one example of ICT.

As the second generation of mobile devices, smartphones may extend the possibilities of generat-

ing income gains for farmers by increasing their access to educational, financial, and health ser-

vices. Such phones may also enhance farmers'income by promoting more participation in the job

market and by intensifying social capital; in addition, smartphones reduce households' exposure

to risks via internet technology and software applications (Aker & Mbiti, 2010; Nie et al., 2021).

There exists a large body of literature concerning the relationship between ICT use and vari-

ous aspects of agriculture and rural development. The studies in question generally found that

ICT had positive effects on the above-mentioned elements. The main aspects of the positive

effects of ICT on agriculture and rural development include: (1) technology adoption (Abate

et al., 2023; Aker, 2011; Gao et al., 2020), (2) agricultural productivity and performance (Aker &

Ksoll, 2016; Kaila & Tarp, 2019; Lio & Liu, 2006; Ogutu et al., 2014; Zheng & Ma, 2023),

(3) income diversification (Leng et al., 2020), (4) market participation and activities (Fan &

Salas Garcia, 2018; Muto & Yamano, 2009; Tadesse & Bahiigwa, 2015), and (5) credit access

(Ma et al., 2023; Munyegera & Matsumoto, 2018; Sekabira & Qaim, 2017a).

In addition to the aforementioned studies, scholars have investigated the relationship

between ICT adoption and farmers' incomes (Hübler & Hartje, 2016; Ma et al., 2018; Ma,

Grafton, et al., 2020; Ma, Nie, et al., 2020; Ma & Wang, 2020; Sekabira & Qaim, 2017b). How-

ever, conclusions in the literature are mixed, likely due to differences in study sites and data,

thus highlighting the need for further research. A review of the literature reveals that most of

the existing studies generally adopted “whether or not a farmer owns/uses an Internet device/

mobile phone/smartphone”as the independent variable, while the digital agricultural extension

services that a farmer received were not specified, and thus it remains unclear what particularly

benefits farmers received. This may partially explain the mixed research conclusions. Therefore,

there is a need for more empirical evidence and discussions on this issue.

Regarding knowledge of ICT use and rural development, one strand of literature focuses on

the role of digital agricultural extension services in economic development (Fabregas

et al., 2019). Digital agricultural extension services tend to be more effective than conventional

extension services because they facilitate the provision of site-specific extension recommenda-

tions to farmers (Oyinbo et al., 2020; Ragasa & Mazunda, 2018). Indeed, this is helpful in ensur-

ing both food and environmental security (Fabregas et al., 2023; Mushtaq et al., 2017), and in

improving the functioning of agricultural supply chains (Fabregas et al., 2019). Many studies

have analyzed the factors influencing farmers' adoption of digital agricultural extension services

(McCampbell et al., 2023; Verma & Sinha, 2018), farmers' choices of ICT-based extension tools

(Oyinbo et al., 2020), and extension agents' choices regarding the design of ICT-enabled digital

agricultural extension tools (Drewry et al., 2022;Oyinboetal.,2020). Other studies have provided

insights into the role of innovation and intermediation when it comes to digital agricultural plat-

forms (Heike et al., 2023; Munthali et al., 2018) and the assessment of digital agricultural exten-

sion services potential (Namyenya et al., 2022). With regard to studies concerning the impacts of

digital agricultural extension services, they have offered empirical evidence on a variety of impact

indicators, such asindividual farmer knowledge and self-reported adoption of recommended agri-

cultural inputs and practices (Cole & Fernando, 2021;Oyinboetal.,2022), sustainable

1384 ZHUO ET AL.