Climate‐related armed conflict and communities' resistance to Rural Grazing Area settlement policy in Nigeria's Middlebelt

Abstract

In Nigeria, resource contests have sparked unending ecological conflict. As a result, conflict resolution measures have been proposed to mitigate climate‐related conflict. However, the acceptance of such policies is hampered by ethnic suspicions, communities' exclusion, religious sensitivities, and a lack of political will. State policies are frequently based on centralized resources, which is exacerbated by the complexities of power relations between central and sub‐national authorities. Thus, this article examines communities' resistance to the Rural Grazing Area (RUGA) settlement policy in Nigeria's Middlebelt using Benue state as a reference point. The study employed a quantitative method using questionnaires. The study used a sample size of 385 questionnaires administered in Guma, Gwer‐West, Gwer‐East, Ukum, and Logo local governments in Benue state. Therefore, the article found that the failure of communities' inclusivity substantially contributed to the local revolt against the RUGA settlement policy. Specifically, the study's findings demonstrate that the possibility of losing ancestral lands, the past experience of the host communities, ethnic and political factors, and poor policy awareness were the primary factors that reinforced communities' resistance to RUGA policy. Moreover, the government's over‐reliance on an authoritarian mechanism and wrong policy choices compounded by a non‐inclusive approach contributed to policy failure to gain acceptability at the grassroots level in Benue state. As an intervention, the article recommends democratically inclusive conflict resolution strategies for climate‐related armed conflict in the region.

Anchored in History: Understanding the Persistence of Eco-Violence in Nigeria’s Middle Belt through Collective Memory

“…Domestic policies adopted by the outgoing Nigerian President, Buhari, have produced an environment in which multiple state governors, particularly those in the Middle Belt, accuse his government of marginalisation (Olumba 2022b;Ele 2020;Duru 2020;Ejekwonyilo 2022;Okoh 2022). These accusations emphasise the perceived promotion of Hausa-Fulani dominance in Nigeria, prioritising the interests of Fulani herders while disregarding the concerns of Middle Belt populations who continue to face persistent violence within their communities (Olumba 2022c;Asikhia 2021, p. 17;Ojo 2023), echoing the narratives of Middle Belt elites during the pre-colonial, colonial, and post-colonial periods (Dorward 1969;Tseayo 1975;Ibrahim 2000;Suleiman 2019).…”

“…The North Central region of Nigeria, with a population of over thirty-five million, is experiencing persistent and unprecedented violence between nomadic Fulani herders and sedentary farmers over access to water and grazing fields. Existing literature cites various causes for these conflicts, including resource scarcity, migration, adverse climate conditions, encroachment, the failure of politics, corruption, and ethnic and religious discrimination (Olumba 2022b;Ajala 2020;Mbih 2020;Ojo 2023;Mlambo 2023). Some argue that colonialism and its aftermath shaped African conflicts (Piguet 2018;Onwuzuruigbo 2013;Maiangwa 2017).…”

“…Eco-violence has been argued to stem from herders' migratory movement to newer areas as a result of exposure to adverse climatic conditions and their subsequent settlement in such environments also exposed to resource scarcity issues (Omilusi 2016;Bukari et al 2018;Ducrotoy et al 2018); the denial of access to grazing opportunities; crop damage; rape; cattle rustling; retaliatory killing (Okoli and Atelhe 2014;Okpaleke and Abraham-Dukuma 2020;Ogbette 2021;Cline 2021;Jacquemot 2022); and social discrimination related to people's rights as indigenes within a locality and insufficient community input in policy formulation (Bassett 1988;Kuusaana and Bukari 2015;Maiangwa 2020b;Ojo 2023). Historical contestations between groups and inspiration from past events have contributed to Nigeria's continuance of conflict (Pieri and Zenn 2016;Higazi 2016).…”

Preserving the Future through the Past: Unveiling the Role of Collective Memory in Conflict- Affected Communities.

“…Recently, the conflict between nomadic Fulani herders and sedentary farmers over water and land resources, referred to as eco-violence (Olumba et al, 2022), has intensified (Olumba, 2022b;Ojo, 2023).…”

“…Although previous studies have elucidated the causes, implications, and persisting conflicts between nomadic Fulani herders and sedentary farmers (Ajala, 2020;Ele, 2020;Sule, 2020;Olumba et al, 2022;Ojo, 2023), they have overlooked the role of collective memory in influencing immobility. Moreover, most immobility research has concentrated on cross-border movements rather than internal dynamics within Nigeria, particularly those residing within conflict-affected communities.…”