Global intercountry croplands’ greenhouse gas emissions differences and their potential drivers from economic levels perspective

• Inter-country croplands’ GHG emissions differences were explored. • More potential drivers were discussed based on machine learning algorithms. • The feminization of agriculture was related to developing countries’ emissions. • Land use change significantly impacted emissions in developed countries. Investigating the determinants of intercountry differences in cropland greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions is paramount for emission reduction policies to combat climate change. Based on the categorization of developed and developing countries, this study employed the spatial within-between logarithmic mean Divisia index method, the meta -frontier production-theoretical decomposition analysis method and multiple machine learning algorithms to investigate the primary factors contributing to within- and between-group differences. The findings indicate that (1) developing countries experience higher GHG emissions from croplands than developed countries owing to their technology gap, lower technical efficiency, and less advanced industrial structure in the agricultural sector. However, they demonstrated rapid technological progress with great potential for emissions reduction. (2) The technology gap contributed to within-group differences among developed countries, while potential technological progress influenced those of developing countries. (3) Importance analysis based on machine learning algorithms and regression analysis revealed that the technology gap and the feminization of agriculture was related to developing countries’ emissions, while variables associated with land use change significantly impacted GHG emissions from croplands in developed countries. Therefore, substituting agricultural machinery for labor and increasing technological innovations in the agricultural sector should be promoted in developing countries. Simultaneously, special attention should be paid to rational planning and monitoring of croplands in developed countries.