The Net Primary Productivity （NPP） of vegetation plays a crucial role in terrestrial ecosystems, and a detailed investigation into the annual average NPP and its driving factors is of significant importance for promoting regional ecological construction and sustainable development. This research utilized MOD17A3 annual average NPP data from 2000 to 2020 and employed methods such as trend analysis, Hurst index, random forest model, partial dependence model, geographic weighted regression, and partial least squares-structural equation model （PLS-SEM） to analyze the annual variation characteristics of NPP and its relationship with driving factors in the upper and middle reaches of the Yellow River. The results showed： ① During the period from 2000 to 2020, the annual average NPP in the upper and middle reaches of the Yellow River generally exhibited a year-on-year increasing trend, with 79.25% of the region showing a significant improvement in annual average NPP, while 0.25% of the region exhibited a severe degradation trend. ② The dominant influencing factors of the annual average NPP in the upper and middle reaches of the Yellow River included precipitation, NDVI, drought, and relative humidity. The suitable range for increasing annual average NPP was 400 mm to 650 mm for precipitation and 40% to 70% for relative humidity, and NDVI showed a significantly linear positive correlation with annual average NPP. Drought index was negatively correlated with annual average NPP. The annual average NPP tended to stabilize and did not decline further when the drought index exceeded the threshold of 8. ③ Extreme rainfall indirectly affected the variation in annual average NPP in the basin by influencing the vegetation growth condition. The impact degree of extreme rainfall indices on the annual average NPP in the basin was in the following order： R10>R95P>PRCPTOT>SDII>Rx5day>R99P. ④ The next steps in ecological construction in the upper and middle reaches of the Yellow River should focus on the arid and severely arid regions in the northern part of the Yellow River, adapting measures to local conditions and enhancing the regional ecological environment.
Keywords: driving factors; extreme rainfall; net primary productivity（NPP）; spatiotemporal variation; upper and middle reaches of the Yellow River.