The impact of agricultural policies on agrobiodiversity management in a pre-Rif farming system in Morocco: what implications for resilience?
2025
Cobelli, Océane | Teixidor-Toneu, Irene | El Fatehi, Salama | Hmimsa, Younès | Leclerc, Christian | Labeyrie, Vanesse | Savoirs, ENvironnement et Sociétés (SENS) ; Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement (Cirad)-Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Université de Montpellier Paul-Valéry (UMPV) | Institut méditerranéen de biodiversité et d'écologie marine et continentale (IMBE) ; Avignon Université (AU)-Aix Marseille Université (AMU)-Institut de recherche pour le développement [IRD] : UMR237-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) | Abdelmalek Essaadi University [Tétouan] = Université Abdelmalek Essaadi [Tétouan] (UAE) | Amélioration génétique et adaptation des plantes méditerranéennes et tropicales (UMR AGAP) ; Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement (Cirad)-Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement (INRAE)-Institut Agro Montpellier ; Institut national d'enseignement supérieur pour l'agriculture, l'alimentation et l'environnement (Institut Agro)-Institut national d'enseignement supérieur pour l'agriculture, l'alimentation et l'environnement (Institut Agro)-Université de Montpellier (UM) | Département Systèmes Biologiques (Cirad-BIOS) ; Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement (Cirad) | Open access funding provided by CIRAD. This study is part of the ARISER project, led by Vanesse Labeyrie, which has received funding from the European Union's Horizon Europe research and innovation program under Grant Agreement No 101041069.
International audience
显示更多 [+] 显示较少 [-]英语. Agrobiodiversity is widely recognized as essential for smallholder agriculture, particularly for enhancing resilience to disruptions which are increasingly frequent and intense. However, whether agricultural policies support or hinder agrobiodiversity in these systems remains debated. A deeper understanding of how policies intersect with other change drivers and local practices is crucial to improving decision-making. Using a case study from northwest Morocco, this research explores the complex interplay between public policies and other factors affecting local agrobiodiversity management. This study is based on the analysis of semi-structured interviews conducted with 48 farmers documenting the changes in their farm and agrobiodiversity management system, and comparing it with that of their parents, as well as the perceived drivers of these changes. The results of this analysis were cross-checked with literature on agricultural policies. Our results show that major changes in agrobiodiversity management systems occurred at three levels: (i) seeds and varieties of annual crops; (ii) farming activities (i.e., crop species and livestock); and (iii) associated agricultural practices from plot to landscape. Public policies were found to be important drivers of these changes but interacted with other drivers such as climate change, rural exodus and other societal and economic shifts. Nevertheless, our research also highlights the persistence of local practices and motivations that sustain agrobiodiversity despite strong pressures, particularly through culinary practices, crop rotation, and agroforestry. This study underscores the complex, context-specific interactions that shape local agrobiodiversity management systems. It discusses the implications of changes in agrobiodiversity management systems on the resilience of farm livelihoods, and emphasizes the need to recognize local distinctiveness in adapting these systems to global change.
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