Objective Spatiotemporal differences and driving factors in the management and maintenance of the infrastructure in rural Fujian were studied to showcase some suggested improvements for the public service and agricultural development.

Method Based on the database on the number, provided supports, scope of demand, and environmental issues of the projects for managing and maintaining the rural infrastructure in Fujian from 2014 to 2023, this paper utilized multiple tools including Arc GIS software, spatial autocorrelation model, geographic detector, and GTWR model to analyze the decade-long spatiotemporal characteristics and determining factors concerning the public service at 83 counties in the province. The multi-dimensional quantitative approach was applied to overcome the shortcomings of the currently existing static or cross-sectional analysis and afford a better understanding of the interactive effects played in the dynamic evolution of the program that is deemed to substantially contribute to the nation’s current effort in quality upgrading the economic development.

Results From a spatial perspective, there is no universal autocorrelation, but local aggregation, on the rural infrastructure management in Fujian. Regional differentiations and periodical variation exist, but the prevailing driving force has been the support rendered by the providing entities. The differences between projects were largely brought about by the differentiated public expenditure budgeting and monetary deposit and loan balances in financial institutions. Temporally, as shown by the fitting coefficients, the rural residents' disposable income, financial institutions' deposit and loan balances, rural residents' minimum living allowance, and number of students in school in the regions rose first and then fell, while the total retail consumer goods sales continued to increase and those of the other factors on a U-trend. This study unveiled a deeper picture of the mechanisms that differentiated the projects executed in the province.

Conclusion It appeared that a standardized system embracing a functional finance mechanism and dynamic and highly adaptable support and regulations with the target for green development would be highly desirable for managing the new age infrastructure in rural areas in Fujian as well as elsewhere in China.