Climate change, pastoral migration, resource governance and security: the Grazing Bill solution to farmer-herder conflict in Nigeria

Abstract

Violent conflict between native communities and migrant herdsmen is one of Nigeria’s most ubiquitous security challenges in the age of climate change. It accounts for an increasing number of human and material losses which is not only surpassed by the country’s ongoing counter-insurgency, but also threatens unity among its regions. It has therefore gained attention in the legislative arm of government. In response, lawmakers mainly of northern Nigeria extraction have proposed a Grazing Bill which seeks to expand and legalize nationwide access to grazing land for pastoral farmers in defiance to agitation in host communities for legislative protection. A cardinal principle of federalism is the premium placed on preservation of local interests that are peculiar to component units while harnessing strength in areas of concerns common to federating units. Against the backdrop of Nigeria’s federal system and its social, ecological and historical diversity, this paper examines the implications of the proposed Grazing Bill for managing farmer-herder conflict. It argues that frameworks which downplay the country’s diversity will further aggravate conflicts and insecurity in the fragile federation. The paper therefore advocates for sedentary system of cattle ranching.

Meat, milk and more: Policy innovations to shepherd inclusive and sustainable livestock systems in Africa

“…To find a permanent solution to the conflicts, the government of Nigeria passed a Grazing Bill that aims to expand and legalize pastoralists' access to grazing land. 179 However, more needs to be done to develop early-warning or rapid response mechanisms and to enhance livestock management practices to reduce tension with agrarian communities. This could be achieved through enhanced community-level dialogue.…”

Patriarchy and Women Vulnerability to Adverse Climate Change in Nigeria

“…Vulnerability to climate change describes the degree of exposure of people, geophysical and socioeconomic systems to adverse climate change as well as the extent to which people can respond to problems associated with climate change (Amusan, Abegunde, & Akinyemi, 2017). Women vulnerability to climate change has much to do with their level of susceptibility to adverse impacts of climate change.…”

Geospatial Technology Potentials in Reawakening the Consciousness of Soil Distribution in Nigeria’s North-Central Region and Mediating the Herdsmen-Farmers Conflicts

“…These include the collapse of the traditional burti system of cattle routes, the declining importance of dairy production, migration and disease, and the intensification of agriculture in riparian areas known as fadama cultivation. Since then, many recent studies (including Obioha, 2008;Olabode & Ajibade, 2010;Odoh & Chigozie, 2012;Folami & Folami, 2013;Abugu & Onuba, 2015;Amusan et al, 2017;Tanimu & Akujuru, 2018) have implicated the changing global climate in the herdsmen-farmers conflicts. Table 1 shows a summary of these studies highlighting their unique contexts and main findings.…”

“…These conflicts are clearly a struggle for land resources (Bello, 2013;Abbass, 2014;Majekodunmi et al, 2014;Dimelu et al, 2016). Whilst land in itself maintains a fixed attribute in supply, the effects of poor resources governance and possible climate change have reduced it to a limited and scarce commodity and a cause of disagreement for related and proximate consumers in the region in question (Amusan et al, 2017). Put in another way, although human beings are engaged in these conflicts, it is ideologically a battle for dominance for either crops or herds.…”