Resolving herdsmen/farmers’ clashes

FOLLOWING the incessant clashes between herdsmen and farmers in the country, many state governments across the country have adopted a number of strategies to solve the problem. The Ekiti State government, for instance, criminalized open grazing, while state governments in the North mooted the idea of setting up grazing routes.

In Abia State, the Commissioner of Police, Mr Leye Oyebade, was reported to have summoned a meeting to resolve clashes between farmers and herdsmen in the state.

The meeting was attended by representatives of the state government; members of the state House of Assembly, local government chairmen; traditional rulers; heads of security agencies, farmers, herdsmen and other stakeholders.

But of particular interest to me is the 23-point communiqué said to have been issued at the end of the meeting.

Among other highlights, it was resolved that  all herdsmen coming into any area must be properly screened by the native authorities, that sufficient herdsmen should be employed by all cattle owners to take effective control of cattle during grazing, and that no herdsman should allow his cows to destroy any farmland. For farmers, deliberately poisoning of sources of water was outlawed.

While these resolutions are proper, I think that they fall shy of a permanent solution to the issue of clashes between herdsmen and farmers.

The best thing to do is to simply outlaw nomadic farming in the country and embrace the cattle ranching system.

That way, herdsmen will have no reason to suspect that their cattle may drink poisoned water, while farmers will not have to entertain any fears about cattle destroying their crops.

James Stanley

Lagos