Land-Related Conflicts and the Nature of Government Responses in Africa: The Case of Farmer-Herder Crises in Nigeria

This article makes a case for state complicity in land-related conflicts, particularly as it concerns governments’ responses to farmer-herder crises in Nigeria. Two factors which characterize security architecture informed our assumption. First, is the increasing terror threat from radicalized herdsmen, and the consequences of displacements and deaths of thousands of citizens. Second, is the resort to self-defence by communities due to apparent failure of the state to provide security for their lives and property. Extant literature discusses the likely complicity of the central government of Nigeria in the increasing criminalities on the one hand, while on the other hand, opinions suggest that non-state armed groups are contesting the monopoly of force with the state. Thus, we are concerned with the issue of state complicity in the prevalence of farmer-herder conflict in Nigeria. We argue that there is a strong connection between the role of the governments (at all levels), which is suggestive of moral culpability, in land-related issues and the continual resurgence of farmer-herder conflicts in Nigeria. Timely and dispassionate deployment of state security forces is required as well as adoption of ranching policies in line with global best practices.