SPATIAL ANALYSIS OF RURAL DEVELOPMENT OF MUNICIPALITIES IN THE SUBMEDIO SÃO FRANCISCO REGION

Abstract

The present study analyzes the spatial dependence in the municipalities of the São Francisco River Sub-Middle Region about the level of rural development to identify the effects of RDI’s determining variables. Thus, Exploratory Spatial Data Analysis (ESDA) techniques and spatial econometrics models are applied and observes that the region being studied exhibits a very heterogeneous distribution in terms of rural development with clusters of the High-High (HH) type, concentrated around the Petrolina-Juazeiro pole, and the Low-Low (LL) type that indicates the existence of municipalities with low RDI's, which are surrounded by municipalities with similar characteristics. The analysis of the spatial econometric model SAR (Spatial Autoregressive Model) showed that the RDI is positively affected by the variables GDP per capita, Municipal Human Development Index (MHDI), Employment in agricultural & animal farming establishments and Proportion of agricultural & animal farming establishments that obtained funding, with emphasis on the MHDI. These results provide support for of the dynamics of rural development in the São Francisco River Sub-Middle Region, offering a comprehensive view of the complexities, challenges and opportunities to improve the living conditions of the populations in this region. These discoveries are fundamental to guide decision-making and the implementation of policies that seek leverage rural development in the municipalities under study.