Government has failed to define the crisis properly in the light of new developments. The narratives are mixed and, at times, one-sided, due to poor understanding or deliberate misinformation. As a result, finding the proper remedies continues to prove difficult. For instance, despite efforts to establish peaceful co-existence within communities, assaults continue, with the attackers coming from the bush and retreating there afterwards.
Over the past decade, conflict between communities has claimed countless lives in Nigeria’s Middle Belt region and displaced millions. Similar clashes are happening in states like Plateau and other communities across the Sahel region. The underlying causes of conflict in these communities are complex and varied. However, multiple layers of contestation primarily drive the conflict. The first relates to ethnic and religious identities.
The second is linked to tensions arising from claims of ownership, annexation, and land use. Farmers fear that herders will take over their land, while herders agitate about their entitlement to land ownership and insist on occupation to protect their livelihood. The third is the issue of organised crime and the proliferation of small arms and light weapons, as insurgents and bandits operating in nearby states seek to expand their networks.
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Irregular Climate Patterns Force Migration Southwards
Climate change is believed to be one of the key reasons these contestations have become more intense. As patterns of rainfall become irregular, drought and deforestation increase, and the availability of resources like water and productive land continue to dwindle, herdsmen are, therefore, compelled to constantly search for grazing lands, often heading towards greener vegetation southwards.
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Competition for access to these resources has heightened between pastoralists and farmers. Historically, the farmers are mainly Christians, while the pastoralists are predominantly Muslims. Hence, confrontations between these two groups easily take on a religious dimension, although some analysts consider the religious lens an oversimplification of a complex social problem.
Multiple Narratives of Indigene-Settler Dichotomy Continue to Linger
Lingering Indigene-settler questions are part of the reasons why the conflicts still linger. Indigenes appeal to ancestral origin and how they sold land to Fulani settlers. While Fulani migrant communities, who have lived in some of these areas for so many years, evoke historical antecedents and insist that they have contributed to development in the communities and, as such, feel entitled to resources such as land and water. Tensions escalate as a result, and land becomes delineated among the groups. Such efforts are often inadequately managed or politicised, leading to conflict.
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Eye witness reports insist that the motivation of the attackers seems to have changed from getting access to grazing land for their cattle to outright occupation. The attackers have also reportedly become more organised and ruthless, with increased impunity, as if they are mercenaries, some of who might have been procured for the destructive missions.
In addition, many of the settlers are Muslims, who feel that the ideology and teachings of their religion ought to be protected and promoted. There is also deep distrust arising from the perceived official legitimation of the domination and hegemony of the Hausa-Fulani over the minorities, since the colonial era.
Furthermore, these minority nationalities, which are predominantly Christian, consider themselves marginalised by the power structures of Islamic theocracy created in Northern Nigeria through centres such as Sokoto and Bornu. These conflict drivers have since mutated. Recent attacks now look like organised acts of terrorism.
Attacks Continue With Multiple Casualties and Displacements
On Christmas Eve in 2023, a strange incident occurred in Plateau state. It was reported that hundreds of gunmen on motorcycles and foot invaded more than twenty communities in separate but coordinated attacks in Bokkos and Barkin Ladi local government areas. These assailants reportedly held the communities under siege for about seven hours, bearing guns and machetes. More than 150 persons were killed and several houses destroyed. Many residents of the communities were displaced, while the area was occupied.
A similar incident was reported when attackers stormed communities in the Tse Azege and Innyiev communities in Mkomon district, Kwande local government area of Benue State. Christmas festivities were disrupted by these criminals, leading to the death of at least 11 persons. Recently, about 114 persons were killed in sporadic attacks across Benue and Plateau states within 14 days. Reports indicate that about 3000 men, women and children have been killed in violent attacks in Plateau State alone.
Widespread Complacency from the Security Agencies Has Eroded Trust
Eye witness reports insist that the motivation of the attackers seems to have changed from getting access to grazing land for their cattle to outright occupation. The attackers have also reportedly become more organised and ruthless, with increased impunity, as if they are mercenaries, some of who might have been procured for the destructive missions.
Despite government efforts, gaps in policing and law enforcement have contributed to the audacity of the attackers. Suggestions for the establishment of state police have been made. Yet, political leaders have recommended self-defence as a way forward. However, this approach may likely allow the conflict situation to now degenerate into chaos and anarchy.
Complacency from authorities, especially the security agencies, has been widespread. Many of the victims have recounted that whenever some of their attackers were apprehended, none of them got punished, pointing to what they describe as deliberate negligence. Some communities insist that security agencies have been infiltrated and even consider the military as an extended arm of the Fulani militia, pointing to heightened suspicion and a breakdown of trust. These victims insist that the security agencies only show up to protect the attackers, in order to prevent reprisal killings, after harm has been done to them.
Gaps in Law Enforcement Amidst Calls for the Establishment of State Police
Government has failed to define the crisis properly in the light of new developments. The narratives are mixed and, at times, one-sided, due to poor understanding or deliberate misinformation. As a result, finding the proper remedies continues to prove difficult. For instance, despite efforts to establish peaceful co-existence within communities, assaults continue, with the attackers coming from the bush and retreating there afterwards.
Coordination and consistency in policy approaches have been missing in combating conflict in the Middle Belt region. Many states and the federal government are yet to agree on the right approach to issues like open grazing and ranching. The ongoing conflict has led to reduced agricultural production, supply chain disruption, food inflation and a higher risk of food insecurity across the country. Seasonal window dressing on the outcome of the conflict has postponed the tackling of the root causes.
Despite government efforts, gaps in policing and law enforcement have contributed to the audacity of the attackers. Suggestions for the establishment of state police have been made. Yet, political leaders have recommended self-defence as a way forward. However, this approach may likely allow the conflict situation to now degenerate into chaos and anarchy.
Uche Igwe is a senior political economy analyst and visiting professor at the Polish Centre for African Studies in Wroclaw. He can be reached at [email protected]
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