Advancing Agroecology for Sustainable Water Management: A Comprehensive Review and Future Directions in North African Countries

This review article delves into the intricate relationship between agroecology and water management, focusing on their mutual influence and proposing innovative strategies for achieving sustainable agriculture in North African countries. It provides a comprehensive overview of current agroecological practices and their impact on water availability, quality, and conservation. Addressing the challenges in traditional agricultural systems, this review highlights potential agroecological principles to enhance water sustainability. Furthermore, this review critically evaluates the existing literature on agroecological approaches to water management, including agroforestry, conservation agriculture, water-efficient irrigation, and landscape design. It presents new perspectives on integrating biodiversity for water regulation, leveraging ecosystem services for purification, and adopting advanced technologies, such as precision agriculture and remote sensing, for efficient water management. Additionally, this review explores policies and strategies for water management in agriculture in North African countries. This underscores the importance of aligning these policies with agroecological principles in order to promote sustainable water use and conservation. This review emphasizes the role of stakeholder engagement, robust policy frameworks, and economic incentives in promoting the widespread adoption of agroecological practices. By identifying the research gaps and proposing promising avenues for future research, this review contributes to the ongoing discourse on sustainable agriculture. This calls for interdisciplinary collaboration among agronomists, hydrologists, ecologists, policymakers, and local communities to develop holistic approaches that seamlessly integrate agroecology and modern water management, ensuring sustainable agricultural systems in the region.