Guiding Sustainable Innovation in Angolan Smallholder Agriculture: Toward a Farm Model Based on Agroecology and Water Harvesting

Climate change severely constrains Angolan smallholder farming, where a conventional agricultural model dependent on two rainy seasons narrows the window of opportunity for maize production and thereby threatens the food security of farming communities. The study proposes a transition towards agroecology and sustainable water management as a response to these constraints. The objective is to evaluate the effects of three agroecological practices and six water-harvesting techniques on maize dry weight per sample and soil moisture content (VWC%). The research followed a participatory design involving ten communities in Cuanza Sul and Benguela, providing novel evidence from the understudied Angolan context. Field monitoring spanned consecutive growing seasons (2023–2026), with data analysed using linear mixed-effects models (LMMs). The results suggest that the integration of agroecological practices and water-harvesting techniques enhances maize production capacity by facilitating soil water infiltration and nutrient availability. Statistically significant increases in maize dry weight per sample and soil moisture were localised to specific sites, while exploratory positive trends emerge in other communities. Gaps in longitudinal data continuity and missing data for other indicators restricted the models to these two variables. Overall, the findings indicate that the adoption of innovations has the potential to enhance the Angolan agroecosystem in the context of climate change.