Nigeria: Finding Solution to Clashes Between Herdsmen and Farmers

10 January 2012
editorial

Clashes, some of them deadly, between Fulani pastoralists and farmers in the country have become a recurring phenomenon. Over the years, the best effort of government at all levels and community leaders have failed to provide a lasting solution to the problem.

Farmers often complain that grazing animals wander into their cropland at critical growth periods or even worse at harvest point. On the other hand, the pastoralists, usually Fulani, would be determined to secure good grazing sites for their herds. These opposing needs often lead to conflict between both sides, sometimes leading to loss of lives and destruction of property, including animals and farm produce. The situation is compounded by the lack of adequate grazing reserves for the pastoralists as the few gazetted ones have been taken over by urbanisation and farm settlements. The problem is the same nationwide and, so far, government has not taken steps to address the issue.

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