Spatial pattern of climate change and farmer–herder conflict vulnerabilities in Nigeria

Madu, Ignatius Ani; Nwankwo, Cletus Famous

doi:10.1007/s10708-020-10223-2

Cited by 35 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 44 publications

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“…Hartmann argues the environmental security discourse may become an ideological function in the new enclosures that are bringing "about the dispossession of small African farmers" and herders because Africa has been widely recognized as the "regions of the world most targeted by large land transfers" (p. 777). A study by Madu and Nwankwo (2020) explored the relationship between climate change vulnerabilities and the farmer-herder conflict in Nigeria found no significant positive relationship between the conflict and climate change. They argue that climate change does not automatically lead to conflict.…”

Section: Why? Attributions and Imputations Of Causality (Blame Strate...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Grammar of Geopolitics: Geopolitical Imaginations of Farmer-herder Conflicts in Nigeria

Nwankwo¹

2022

jgeography

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The farmer-herder conflicts (FHCs) in Nigeria have aggravated in recent years, and so too has its scholarly inquiry. However, there is yet a critical geopolitics analysis of the conflicts despite their geopolitical manifestations. This paper explores the geopolitical imagination of the conflicts based on the " Grammar of Geopolitics approach" of Gearóid Tuathail. Data used were newspapers' stories and supplemented by government and independent bodies' reports. The article shows that the conflicts are represented with ecological and socio-political storylines with local, regional, and global inclinations. They are imagined as evolving from local disagreements to entangle regional political crises and shaped by global environmental shocks (especially climate change) on local communities. The geopolitical storyline of the Nigerian government portrays the conflict as entrenched in lands and amplified by regional crises. The administration's proposed socio-spatial arrangement (cattle colony) to segregate nomadic herders from arable farmers to avert violence has failed to gain traction in Nigeria's various areas. The policy itself contradicts the ancient system of nomadic pastoralists, who flourish in smooth space and would not thrive in a constrained striated space. Thus, apart from addressing the environmental and ecological problems associated with the conflicts, the issue of regional geopolitical dynamics within Nigeria and the West Africa region has to be considered. Removal of regional barriers to access and inclusion of the pastoralists in resource use via a trans-regional framework recognizing local needs and disparities is vital. The paper indicates that the grammar of the geopolitics model can handle the media discourse of the FHCs in Nigeria well and helps to organize the narratives (if corroborated with extant scholarly literature as in the case of climate change-FHCs nexus) in such a way that avoids falling into inherently subjective trappings of the media storylines. Thus, the model is best suited for its purpose-to analyze geopolitical imaginations emanating from media sources.

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Section: Why? Attributions and Imputations Of Causality (Blame Strate...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Grammar of Geopolitics: Geopolitical Imaginations of Farmer-herder Conflicts in Nigeria

Nwankwo¹

2022

jgeography

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“…This situation calls for a look at other issues that may trigger violence. Recently, Madu and Nwankwo (2020) show that places with resource scarcity and vulnerable to climate change experience lesser FHC in Nigeria.…”

Section: The Political Ecology Of the Farmer-herder Conflictsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Moral wrongs, indigeneity and the enactment of farmer-herder conflicts violence in South-Eastern Nigeria

Nwankwo

Okafor

2021

GeoScape

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Existing studies of the farmer-herder conflicts (FHCs) in Nigeria have not explored the political ecology of the conflict in South-Eastern Nigeria (SEN). Using the political ecology framework (PEF), the paper examines the nature of the FHCs in Nimbo and Awgu areas in SEN. Data were collected through field observations and in-depth interviews. The paper shows that resource scarcity or reduced farming and grazing spaces did not engender violent FHCs in the study area. Instead, actions of the actors that are perceived to be morally wrong are critical. Allegations of moral transgression such as rape, kidnapping by herders and claims that a herder was used as a sacrifice by villagers triggered the violent episode. The pastoralists are discriminated against on the ground of indigenous belonging only after being alleged to have morally transgressed by kidnapping and raping women. However, on the ground that a herder was allegedly used as a sacrifice, they felt also wronged. While the herders are discriminated against based on their non-belonging in the community because they are not indigenous, they have mount resistance by emphasising their citizenship rights and using force to maintain access to grazing spaces, thereby amplifying the farmer-herder tensions. Thus, while identity has contributed to the FHCs violence, moral wrongs enacted and amplified it. The paper contributes to the literature by arguing that while what triggers FHCs may be moral wrongs, moral transgressions can heighten identity constructions that get implicated in practices of exclusion.

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“…Water resources that are mandatory for agricultural practices as well as fertile land quickly become scarce. It can be hypothesized that climate change will have its most immediate adverse effects on agricultural economies, which are over-represented in the poor and conflict-prone regions of the world, and therefore it will amplify conflict and insecurity [38,39]. The degradation of freshwater and the decline of food production with the resulting socioeconomic impacts have also been identified by the German Advisory Council on Global Change [40] as factors that may lead to conflict.…”

Section: Conceptual Frameworkmentioning

confidence: 99%

Insecurity, Resource Scarcity, and Migration to Camps of Internally Displaced Persons in Northeast Nigeria

2020

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For almost two decades, the Lake Chad Basin (LCB) in general and northeast Nigeria in particular have been subject to the insurgency of the Islamist terrorist group Boko Haram. This region is also known for its poor environmental conditions that mostly manifest in land desertification and water scarcity. We analyze the impact of the insecurity and conflict on migration from the most affected rural areas of northeast Nigeria to Maiduguri. We also explore the role that water scarcity and land desertification play in the decision of local people to migrate. Data were collected by interviewing 204 internally displaced persons (IDPs) at the Bakassi IDP camp in Maiduguri between March and May 2019. Experts were also interviewed at various governmental, non-governmental, and international institutions in Abuja. Respondents at the Bakassi IDP camp came from Guzamala, Gwoza, Marte, Monguno, and Nganzai. Though insecurity created by the conflict between Boko Haram insurgents and government forces was mentioned by all respondents as the main factor that triggered migration, this study shows that the decision to migrate was also a function of other factors that differ between communities. These factors include the geographical location of the community, land ownership, the socioeconomic status of the migrants, access to water and land, and wealth. This study reveals that in some communities, it was possible for people to live with conflict if they were still able to practice farming or if they had additional sources of income such as small businesses. The decision to migrate was only taken when the practice of such activities was no longer possible and they had nothing to hold on to.

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Spatial pattern of climate change and farmer–herder conflict vulnerabilities in Nigeria

Cited by 35 publications

References 44 publications

Grammar of Geopolitics: Geopolitical Imaginations of Farmer-herder Conflicts in Nigeria

Grammar of Geopolitics: Geopolitical Imaginations of Farmer-herder Conflicts in Nigeria

Moral wrongs, indigeneity and the enactment of farmer-herder conflicts violence in South-Eastern Nigeria

Insecurity, Resource Scarcity, and Migration to Camps of Internally Displaced Persons in Northeast Nigeria

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