The obvious question comes up - why can't Al-Andalus change the political factors its struggling with?
Its all well and good to say that there are clan/tribal issues, or power based on the leader and his family, or not very many Muslims ruling over a much larger Christian population - but why is all of this set in stone when for instance, the kings of France went from among the weaker kings of Christendom to the most dominant?
It all seems to be something that - intentionally or not - implies that people outside Western Christendom are just incapable of political evolution and development.
The big problem I see is that any berber state is ruling over effectively two separate kingdoms that have hugely different factors in how they need to be run. I see the issue as more that if they change something to make Al Andalus run better they risk alienating the North African tribespeople they rely on for military support. Really what's needed in Al-Andalus in my opinion is for Al Andalus to be able to put together it's own means of defending itself independent of North African troops. One idea I will steal from An Age Of Miracles was the idea of Al Andalus adopting a system similar to the Byzantine Themes of semi professional soldiers so as to not break the bank while also providing a much needed native defense force.