Research On Inequality, Polarization And Mobility Of Municipal Infrastructure Investment In China's Urban System

Municipal infrastructure is the basic condition for the development of cities and the material carrier for the provision of urban public services.Hence the construction and investment of municipal infrastructure not only meet the needs of urban people for the beautiful residential environment,but also provide material conditions and opportunities for urban development.The report of 19 th CPC(Communist Party of China)National Congress points out that the principal contradiction of Chinese socialism has transferred to the contradiction between unbalanced and inadequate development(UID)and the people's ever-growing needs for a better life.Due to restrictions on the stage of economic and social development and on the policy of urban regional development,the development of municipal infrastructure between Chinese cities has been faced with UID problems in a long time,which is a challenge of the regional and urban balanced development(RUBD),as well threats the equalization of basic public services between cities(EBPS).In periods of rapid urbanization,municipal infrastructure is accelerating investment and formation,equal and rational allocation of municipal infrastructure investment(MII)at this time is good for RUBD,as well promotes the EBPS.Reversely,MII unbalance would hinder the RUBD,undermine EBPS,impact on social equity and sustainable urbanization,and aggravate the principal contradiction of Chinese socialism.There have been some studies on China's MII unbalance,these studies not only provide a good analytical paradigm for exploring the unbalance of China's MII,but also offer many basic data and detailed information for solving it,which contribute better understanding of the current situation and trends in China's MII unbalance by scholars,governments,and the public.However,the previous studies contain some limitations:(1)From the perspective,most studies have explored the MII at the provincial or regional level,but failed to conduct in-depth analysis from the Chinese urban level,hence the study spatial scale is too macroscopic and not deep enough.(2)From the dimension,most studies of MII unbalance only take inequality or differentia into account,but they rarely explore polarization and mobility,hence the research dimension of MII unbalance is not comprehensive.(3)Structurally,few studies have structurally decomposed the overall inequality so that the impact of fund source structure,urban types and factor mobility on the overall MII inequality cannot be further analyzed.Based on the above analyses,this article would establish the theoretical framework according to the related theory of infrastructure,the related theory of government allocation,the theory of economic geography and the theory of sustainable development.After establishing this theoretical foundation,we will conduct the study on the MII inequality,polarization and mobility from the perspective of China's urban system by using the per capita MII statistics of all cities around China and by taking advantage of the Gini coefficient and its decomposition,the bi-polarization and multi-polarization index,mobility function and “progress” index and other methods.The research includes literature and theoretical research,empirical research and normative research.Compared with the existing research,there are three main marginal contributions of this research:(1)From the perspective,the exploration of the MII unbalance goes deep into the urban level so that it is good to comprehend the MII unbalance in China's urban system.(2)From the dimensions,the study on MII unbalance is extended from the inequality just to a more comprehensive dimension,including inequality,polarization and mobility,which contributes to a more comprehensive understanding and mastering the situation and trend of MII unbalance.(3)Structurally,through the structural decomposition of the overall inequality,we quantitatively and deeply analyze the impact of various fund sources,urban types and factor mobility on the overall inequality of MII in China's urban system.Through this study,the main conclusions are as follows:(1)Through the analysis of the MII inequality in China's urban system,the main findings are found: Firstly,the overall inequality of MII in China's urban system is relatively prominent.Secondly,the overall inequality is mainly from the national budgeted fund,domestic loan,and self-raised funds.Thirdly,the inequality between different administrative levels or regional cities only partially contributed to the overall inequality in China's urban system.(2)By studying the polarization of MII in China's urban system,the results show that: Firstly,MII bi-polarization and overall inequality in China's urban system shows inconsistent performance,and compared with the overall inequality,the bi-polarization the variation range is clearly larger.Secondly,the MII multi-polarization of different administrative level cities is decreasing,and the MII multi-polarization of different regional cities shows a “U-shaped” change generally.Thirdly,the MII polarization and inequality of different administrative level cities are relatively consistent.Meanwhile,there is a higher consistency of the MII polarization and inequality between different regional cities.(3)Through the exploration of the problem about the MII in China's urban system,the results are as follows: Firstly,the orientation of China's MII is not rigid,and there is a certain mobility between cities as a whole.Furthermore,the longer the time span is,the stronger the mobility is.Secondly,the MII mobility within each type of cities and between regional cities is greater,while the mobility between different administrative level cities is relatively weaker.Thirdly,the long-term inequality and polarization are obviously smaller than those of each period,and mobility plays a positive role in reducing the inequality and polarization.Fourthly,the concentration effect caused by the change of fund structure and the increase of per capita MII play the most significant role in narrowing the overall MII inequality in China's urban system.Finally,based on the empirical findings and the reality of China's MII and financing,some systematic and targeted policy suggestions are proposed from adjusting MII inequality and polarization,promoting the mobility of MII between cities,integrating five development concepts systematically,making more accurate investment strategies for MII,balancing equity and efficiency,and others.