Co-victims or Antagonists: Some Observations on Farmers and Herders Conflicts in Nigeria

Abstract

Farmers and herders conflict is an example of eco-violence, where scarcity of resources caused by environmental factors led to conflict and violence among competing groups. In Central Nigeria, the conflict is fundamentally a land-use contest between farmers and herders. Although the conflict has taken a dangerous religious and ethnic dimension with devastating effects on ethnic relations, however, the objective of this paper is to identify the underlying causes which has its root in the climate induces degradation of pasture causing increasing violence in the far north and thereby forced herders to move southward. This paper made reference to newspaper publications, statute books, published books and close-group discussion and interview with selected individuals who shared their personal experiences with the authors. The findings reveal that the movement of livestock en mass to the Central Nigeria area caused degradation on the environment resulting in the desolation of the land thereby reducing arable land for cultivation. The overgrazing of the area led to fewer yields in production of crops such as yam, cassava, rice, maize, guinea corn, and soya beans amongst others. Therefore, in a quest to expand their farmland for more yields, farmers swallowed up grazing reserves and block traditional grazing routes. The anti-grazing laws passed by some States of the Central Nigeria was not only geared towards curbing clashes but also to mitigate the environmental impact of the open grazing due to the over grazing of the area.