Can Rural Human Capital Improve Agricultural Ecological Efficiency? Empirical Evidence from China

Agricultural ecological efficiency (AEE) is an important index to measure the coordinated development of agricultural production, resources, and the environment. This study tries to explore the impact of rural human capital (RHC) on AEE, hoping to provide a reference for promoting the green development of agriculture. Data sets (2006-2021) used in this study were gathered from Official Statistics Panel data in 30 provinces in China. Firstly, the super-efficient slacks-based measure model (SBM) with non-expected output is employed to effectively measure AEE. Secondly, the entropy method is used to measure RHC in three dimensions: education, health, and migration. Finally, this study discusses the impact of RHC on AEE using the panel Tobit model and further verifies the moderating effect of Internet popularization on the effect of RHC on AEE using the moderating effect model. The results show that RHC has a significant positive impact on the promotion of AEE, and this positive impact has obvious regional heterogeneity. Specifically, RHC has a greater promoting role on AEE in the eastern and northeastern regions, while it has a smaller promoting role on AEE in the central and western regions. In addition, Internet penetration plays a positive moderating role in the mechanism of the effect of RHC on the AEE. This study may serve as a reference for improving AEE by providing theoretical guidance and policy suggestions for promoting agricultural green development.