Bridge to bigpush or backwash? Market integration, reallocation and productivity effects of Jamuna Bridge in Bangladesh

Agricultural technology choice and transport

Brian Blankespoor, M. Shahe Emran, Forhad Shilpi and Lu Xu

Journal of Economic Geography, 2022, vol. 22, issue 4, 853-871

Abstract: We study the effects of Jamuna Bridge in Bangladesh that reduced the average trade costs by 50% and connected 26 million people by road to the capital city. We use a difference-in-difference design where the isolated Padma hinterland constitutes the comparison. Balance tests for an array of economic characteristics support the parallel trends assumption. The bridge led to economic revival in the Jamuna hinterland with increased agricultural productivity and population density despite a decline in the share of manufacturing employment. The effects are spatially heterogeneous with substantial manufacturing decline in the middle subregion, and the remote areas reaping the highest benefits.

Keywords: Trade costs; bridge; core-periphery; comparative advantage; deindustrialization; population density; sectoral reallocation; agricultural productivity; built-up density; agglomeration (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 O14 O18 R13 R40 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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Working Paper: Bridge to Bigpush or Backwash? Market Integration, Reallocation, and Productivity Effects of Jamuna Bridge in Bangladesh (2018)
Working Paper: Bridge to bigpush or backwash ? market integration, reallocation, and productivity effects of Jamuna bridge in Bangladesh (2018)
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