Study on the Development Level, Spatial Differences and Obstacle Factors of Agricultural Modernization—Taking Cities and Counties in Hainan Province as An Example

【Objective】The development level and existing problems of agricultural modernization were analyzed through quantitative research, and some suggestions were put forward to promote the development of agricultural modernization of Hainan Province and China.【Method】The relevant index data of Hainan Province and 17 cities and counties from 2011 to 2021 were selected as research samples, and an evaluation system with 5 dimensions and 20 indexes was constructed by comprehensive application of analytic hierarchy process (AHP), entropy method, obstacle model and other methods to quantitatively evaluate the development level, spatial differences and obstacle factors of agricultural modernization in Hainan Province.【Result】The results show that the comprehensive score of agricultural modernization development level in Hainan Province increased from 3.928 in 2011 to 4.519 in 2021 (an increase of 16.85%), with an average annual growth rate of 1.53%; however, the overall growth is not high and still in the developmental stage, with a certain gap remaining in achieving the goal of agricultural modernization. From the perspective of regional development, the level of agricultural modernization in the eastern, central, and western regions of Hainan Province and within the regions is unbalanced, presenting a spatial development pattern of "low in central hilly areas and high in cities and counties along the east and west coasts", which reflects differences among regions in terms of economic development level, geographical location, transportation, resource endowment, and other aspects; from the perspective of obstacle factors, the main factors affecting the level of agricultural modernization development in Hainan Province are the guaranteed yield rate of drought and flood, effective electromechanical irrigation rate, expenditures on agricultural, forestry and water affairs, and coverage rate of modern facility agriculture.【Conclusion】The development of agricultural modernization in Hainan Province is still in its early stages, and there is still a certain gap between current level and the goal of agricultural modernization. Enhancing the modernization of agricultural technology and sustainable development of agriculture is the key to achieving the modernization of agriculture in Hainan. In the future, we should increase financial support for agriculture and investments in agricultural technology, especially in the central region, and promote regional balanced development of agricultural modernization according to local conditions.