FFARN, under the auspices of Search for Common Ground (SFCG) collaborated with the Institute for Peace & Conflict Resolution (IPCR), Abuja to examine cross-cutting issues on the selected themes mentioned above in the Sahel and Western Sahara. I retired from IPCR in 2010 as the pioneer Director, External Conflict Prevention & Resolution. I was the very first and only female Director in IPCR to date.
The following were some of the participants:
*Prof. Isaac Olawale Albert - Prof. of Peace Studies, UI & Keynote Speaker
*Dr. Bakut Tswah Bakut - DG IPCR
*Sher Ali Nawaz - Country Director, SFCG
*Dr. Andrew Kwasari - SSA to the President on Agriculture
*Dr. Shidiki Abubakar Ali - University of Bamenda
*Dr. Dayo Oluyemi-Kusa - Independent Consultant/Conflict Transformation Expert & Fmr. Director, IPCR
*Dr. Chris Kwaja - Centre for Peace & Security Studies, MAUTECH
*Dr. Koffi Alinon - Independent Consultant, Togo
*Dr. Saleh Momale -Kaduna State Peace Commission
*Dr. Joseph Ochogwu - IPCR
*Ms. Grace Awodu - IPCR
*Alice Kambire - West Africa Network for Peace-Building (WANEP)
*Djafarou Amadou - L'Association pour la Redynamisation de L'Elevage au Niger (AREN)
*Senator Shehu Sanni - Nigeria
*Dr. Anthony Bature - Federal University, Wakuri
*Abdoulaye Guindo - Association pour la Promotion des Initiatives de Developpment Communautaire (APIDC)
*Antoine Monemou - Association de Cooperation et de Recherche pour le Developpement (ACORD)
*Toyin Falade - SFCG
*Nathaniel Awuapila - Civil Organisations Research Advocacy & Funding Initiatives Development (CORAFID)
*Philip Vande - Federal University, Gusau
*Joseph Gimba - Centre for Peace Education & Community Development, Jalingo
*Adagba Okpaga - Centre for Peace & Development Studies, Benue State University
*Dr. Diamond Preye - Abdulsalami Abubakar Institute for Peace & Development Studies (AAIPSDS), Minna
*Chom Bagu - Mennonite Economic Development Associates (MEDA), Bauchi
*Dr. Ardo Aliyu - APESS
*Dr. Aboki Nawani - Centre for Youth, Women & Community Action, Lafia
*Dr. Agoso Bamaiyi - Adamawa State Agency for Peace, Rehabilitation & Reconstruction
A major observation was that many of the problems related to farmer-herder issues are similar across Anglophone and Francophone countries. Some of the observations and recommendations were:
*There is intensified 'feminisation of poverty' as a result of the farmer-herder crisis. Food scarcity is rampant.
*The societal fabric is broken. Symbiotic relationship between farmers and herders stalled. The means of livelihood is now skewed.
* The conference should be made an annual event.
*Extant rules and regulations for stock routes should be re-visited.
*There is mass displacement of the populace which has led to serious humanitarian problems.
*Indigenous knowledge, which is widely available in the region should be deployed to solve the problems of farmers and herders.
*Value should be added to agricultural products across the value chain.
*Relevant technology, including AI, should be deployed to solve extant problems.
*Both farmers and herders are assets.
*Laws promulgated to solve the farmer-herder problem have now become part of the problem.
*Re-vitalisation of the Lake Chad region needs urgent attention. The effort of the Lake Chad Basin Governors' Forum is noted in this regard. See for example my Blog post on the Governors' first conference: dayokusa.blogspot.com/2018/05/lake-chad-basin-governors-forum-lcbgf.html #LCBGF
*The Private Sector should be involved as part of the solution.
*Ungoverned spaces within nation-states continue to fuel crime. Vigilante groups are trusted more than government security forces.
*There should be greater collaboration between practitioners, academics and policy makers.
*Early response to conflict should complement identified early warning signs.
*In recent times, the intersection between farmer-herder crisis, rural banditry, kidnapping etc. is blurred because they often occur simultaneously.
*We need more positive narratives as regards the farmer-herder crisis.
*The National Livestock Transformation Plan (NLTP) in Nigeria, recently adopted by the 19 northern states and the 'Agro Rangers Specialised Force are some good practices from Nigeria that could be examined in countries in the region under review. The Togo 'grazing zones' where a decent amount is paid on each cow, results in considerable income. This is another good practice for other countries to emulate.
*Security is beyond perimeter fencing. It is important to also enhance human security which ensures a level of confidence building in the populace.
A major take away was that regional solution to the farmer-herder crisis should be intensified because the challenge is beyond borders. Beyond working in silos, nation-states should reach out across the region for sustainable action to resolve the crisis. ECOWAS and the AU have critical roles to play in this regard.
Related Links
*The ECOWAS Community Court of Justice orders the Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) to investigate the January 2018 'mass killings and destruction of property in Benue state https://www.today.ng/news/nigeria/ecowas-court-orders-federal-government-mass-killings https://t.co/klB2G.wiyS
*Conflict prevention in the Sahel: Emerging practice across the UN - The UN must act earlier, often in non-Muslim settings where the UN is led by a Resident Coordinator (RC) https://cpr.unu.edu/conflict-prevention-in-the-sahel-emerging-practice-across-the-un
*Effort of the Judiciary in resolving the farmer-herder crisis in the Middle-Belt of Nigeria https://soundcloud.com/sfcg-nigeria/effort-of-the-judiciary-resolving-farmer-herder-crisis-middle-belt-nigeria/
*France to withdraw troops from the Sahel region https://www.overt.defense.com/2020/11/12/france-to-withdraw-troops-from-sahel-region
*The warning signs are flashing red: The interplay between climate change & Violent Extremism (VE) in the Western Sahel by Tom Midendrop & Reinier Bergema icct.nl/publication/the-warning-signs-are-flashing-red-the-interplay-between-climate-change-and-violent-extremism/
*Mapping the Geography of political violence in North & Central Africa https://oecd-development-matters.org/2019/10/17/mapping-the-geography-of-political-violence-in-north-and-west-africa/
Towards sustainable peace: Development approaches to tackling fragility, conflict and violence https://live.worldbank.org/sustainable-peace-development-tackling-fragility-conflict-violence
*The warning signs are flashing red: The interplay between climate change & violent extremism in the Western Sahel https://icct.nl/publication/the-interplay-between-climate-change-violent-extremism/
*Report: Liptako-Gourma is the epicentre of a security crisis affecting the Sahel-Saharan strip http://ow.ly/yedA50ytSqg
*Grappling with Sahelian insecurity https://t.co/ug1J1fcXzB #WestAfricaInsight
*West African Presidents urge US to stay in the fight against terrorism www.washingtonpost.com/world/africa/west-africa.../2020/01/20/
*Western Sahel: Protests & Risks www.weforum.org>agenda>2019/01>all-the-warning-signs.../
*Growing violence in West Africa http://www.theendofhistory.net/.../ep-225-growing-violence-in-west-africa?
*Violence in the West African/Sahel region https://nextierspd.com/.../recovering-the-sahel.../
*We have to stop destroying nature - and 2020 should be the year we act https://bit.ly/2tTObVa
*Africa's pastoralists: A new battleground for terrorism https://africacentre.org/spotlight/africa-pastoralists-battleground-terrorism/
*Changing contexts & dynamics of farmer-herder conflicts https://www.researchgate.net/publication/260326683_changing_dynamics_farmer_herder_conflicts_across_west_africa/
*Understanding farmer-herder conflicts in West Africa https://www.researchgate.net/publication/277358041_understanding_farmer_herder_conflicts_in_west_africa/
*Growing herdsmen militancy is adding to West Africa's insecurity https://theconversation.com/growing-herdsmen-militancy-adding-to-west-africas-insecurity/
*Herdsmen militancy & humanitarian crisis in Nigeria https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/...
*The trajectories & dynamics of herdsmen militancy https://iiardpub.org/get/jhsp/vol2 no1 2016/thetrajectories.pdf
*Climate change, migration & conflict in West Africa https://cdn.americaprogress.org/wp-content/.../issues/2012/04/pdf/climate-migration-nwaafrica.pdf
*CoV: Loneliness is a modern invention - Understanding that history can us get through this pandemic https://time.com/5828736/loneliness-cov-history/
*The warning signs are flashing red: The interplay between climate change & Violent Extremism (VE) in the Western Sahel by Tom Midendrop & Reinier Bergema icct.nl/publication/the-warning-signs-are-flashing-red-the-interplay-between-climate-change-and-violent-extremism/
*Mapping the Geography of political violence in North & Central Africa https://oecd-development-matters.org/2019/10/17/mapping-the-geography-of-political-violence-in-north-and-west-africa/
Towards sustainable peace: Development approaches to tackling fragility, conflict and violence https://live.worldbank.org/sustainable-peace-development-tackling-fragility-conflict-violence
*The warning signs are flashing red: The interplay between climate change & violent extremism in the Western Sahel https://icct.nl/publication/the-interplay-between-climate-change-violent-extremism/
*Report: Liptako-Gourma is the epicentre of a security crisis affecting the Sahel-Saharan strip http://ow.ly/yedA50ytSqg
*Grappling with Sahelian insecurity https://t.co/ug1J1fcXzB #WestAfricaInsight
*West African Presidents urge US to stay in the fight against terrorism www.washingtonpost.com/world/africa/west-africa.../2020/01/20/
*Western Sahel: Protests & Risks www.weforum.org>agenda>2019/01>all-the-warning-signs.../
*Growing violence in West Africa http://www.theendofhistory.net/.../ep-225-growing-violence-in-west-africa?
*Violence in the West African/Sahel region https://nextierspd.com/.../recovering-the-sahel.../
*We have to stop destroying nature - and 2020 should be the year we act https://bit.ly/2tTObVa
*Africa's pastoralists: A new battleground for terrorism https://africacentre.org/spotlight/africa-pastoralists-battleground-terrorism/
*Changing contexts & dynamics of farmer-herder conflicts https://www.researchgate.net/publication/260326683_changing_dynamics_farmer_herder_conflicts_across_west_africa/
*Understanding farmer-herder conflicts in West Africa https://www.researchgate.net/publication/277358041_understanding_farmer_herder_conflicts_in_west_africa/
*Growing herdsmen militancy is adding to West Africa's insecurity https://theconversation.com/growing-herdsmen-militancy-adding-to-west-africas-insecurity/
*Herdsmen militancy & humanitarian crisis in Nigeria https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/...
*The trajectories & dynamics of herdsmen militancy https://iiardpub.org/get/jhsp/vol2 no1 2016/thetrajectories.pdf
*Climate change, migration & conflict in West Africa https://cdn.americaprogress.org/wp-content/.../issues/2012/04/pdf/climate-migration-nwaafrica.pdf
*CoV: Loneliness is a modern invention - Understanding that history can us get through this pandemic https://time.com/5828736/loneliness-cov-history/
*Integrated approach to building peace in Nigeria's farmer-herder conflict nigeria.un.org/en/92147-integrated-approach-building-peace-nigerias-farmer-herder-conflict/
*Climate war in the Sahel? Pastoral insecurity in West Africa is not what it seems - Leif Brottem https://www.newsecuritybeat.org/2020/11/climate-war-sahel-pastoral-insecurity-west-africa/
*Urban elites' livestock exacerbate farmer-herder tensions in Africa's Sudano-Sahel https://www.newsecuritybeat.org/2019/06/urban-elites-livestock-exacerbate-farmer-herder-tensions-sudano-sahel/
*How gum acacia trees could help build peace in the Sahel https://www.newsecuritybeat.org/2020/03/gum/acacia-trees-build-peace-sahel/
*When climate change meets positive peace https://www.newsecuritybeat.org/2019/07/climate-change-meets-positive-peace/
*Climate change: Recognising the impact on West Africa https://cddelibrary.org/.../climate-change-impact-west-africa/
*Stabilising the Sahel nextierspd.com
*African land grabbing: Whose interests are served? guardian.ng https://t.co/ng2NIoyCiN?amp=1
*Sahel: What to look out for in 2021 theafricareport.com
*Sahel violence: Stepping back from the precipice https://bit.ly/3rC5GRW
*West Africa Transitional Justice mechanisms need bottom-up approach humanangle.ng
*G5 Sahel: N'Djemena Summit should re-define France-Sahel cooperation issafrica.org
*Sahelian crisis https://nextierspd.com/sahelian-crisis/
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