Characterizing Agroecology in North Africa, A Review of 88 Sustainable Agriculture Projects

Agroecology refers to the greening of agrosystems with the mobilization of ecosystem services in order to limit exogenous inputs, enhance biodiversity and moderate the exploitation of natural resources (Tibi A. and Therond O., 2017). Agroecological practices offer pathways for transformation and transition not only of agricultural systems but of entire food systems. Through its objectives, agroecology aims at both sustainable land management and the strengthening of the livelihoods of producers and rural people, and thus contributes to the fight against desertification. To date, there is little scientific literature on the characteristics of agroecology in the Maghreb region. However, we can cite the work of Lattre-Gasquet M. de et al. (2017), Ameur et al. (2020), Akakpo et al. (2021). These studies, although they provide important information on the problem of agroecology in the region, on its different forms and perspectives, do not allow us to draw up a global panorama. The proposed article highlights general characteristics of agroecology in North Africa from a review of 88 sustainable agriculture projects, which it analyzes, through an inventory of agroecological practices supported by these projects, from the frameworks of the High Level Panel of Experts on Food Security and Nutrition, (HLPE, 2019), on the principles of agroecology and the transition levels approach developed by Gliessman and colleagues (Gliessman, 2007; Gliessman and Rosemeyer, 2010; FAO, 2015; Gliessman, 2016). The results show significant differences and evolution in the practices observed at the plot and on the farm, depending on the agrosystems considered. The majority of the agroecological innovations identified are at the plot and farm scales, with the exception of those found in oasis and mountain agrosystems, where practices integrate the scales of the territory and value chains in a more complete way.