Conflict Assessment Between Fulani herdsmen and Crop Farmers: Impact on Water and Food Security

Abstract

This review examines the complex relationships between water resources, agriculture, and conflict in Nigeria, highlighting the impacts of Fulani-herder and farmer disputes on sustainable water management and food security. While the crop farmers accused the herdsmen of destroying their crops and contaminating community waters, the herdsmen accused the crop farmers of denying them access to grazing lands which they need for grazing their cattle. The cause for concern is the invasion of farm areas by armed bandits under the guise of herdsmen, leading to the destruction of rural areas, displacement of rural farmers and the villagers resulting in insecurity and violence. The intensity of the menace is higher in Plateau, Benue, Nassarawa, Southern Kaduna, Zamfara and Taraba States. The menace is also felt in the Southwest with minimum security threats and loss of lives as compared to the North Central zones. The attendant consequences of these clashes are better imagined than described in communities where they occurred. This paper identifies remote and immediate causes of the clashes and provides recommendations and solutions that can be employed to end the clashes or reduce it to a bearable minimum. The paper argues that Fulani herdsmen have in several ways infringed on the privacy of the crop farmers leading to loss of lives and reduction in valuable food produced in these farms leading to increase in food prices as a result of scarcity. By implementing the proposed recommendations, Nigeria can work towards sustainable conflict resolution, ensuring the preservation of inland waters and the promotion of food security for all its citizens. Access to land is a major cause of conflicts. There is the need for the government to review the existing laws as it relates to accessibility to land by members of community. Government should ensure that there is equity and accessibility to arable and grazing land to avert constant conflict. There is need to create awareness on the difference between pasture and crop farm. Therefore, a peaceful coexistence between the crop farmers and Fulani herdsmen in order to create a greater lasting peace between the Fulani herdsmen and crop farmers who had hitherto lived in harmony and co-existed for many decades was emphasized.