Impact of participation in the belt and road initiative on regional economic resilience at province level

Purpose This study aims to examine how participation in the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) affects province-level regional economic resilience. In the context of dual circulation – the new development paradigm proposed by the Chinese Government – participating in the BRI is an important means of connecting both international and domestic circulations and achieving high economic resilience. The complex causal relationship between participation in the BRI and province-level regional economic resilience is investigated. Design/methodology/approach Based on the complex system view, this study uses fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) to examine the impact on regional economic resilience when provinces participate in the BRI through unimpeded trade, infrastructure connectivity, financial integration and people-to-people bonds under the two conditions of attention allocation and buffering capacity. Qualitative textual analysis is applied to analyse provincial work reports, and relevant statistical data are used to measure the economic resilience from 2013 to 2020. Findings The authors identified three condition configurations that lead to a high regional economic resilience at province-level and one condition configuration that lead to no high-level regional economic resilience. Research limitations/implications In-depth analyses of qualitative materials should be conducted to explain the systematic relationships among the conditions. Originality/value This research is of practical significance to the development of the theoretical framework and practices of the BRI in the context of dual circulation.