Following the severe impacts of the open grazing on the political economy of countries in West Africa, especially Nigeria, the federal government and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) have deepened their collaboration to end the incessant crises involving herdsmen and famers, which have killed scores and displaced many more across the region.
President Muhammadu Buhari told a joint high-level meeting of Ministers of Security and Agriculture/Animal Resourcesfrom ECOWAS, Cameroon, Chad, Mauritania and the Central African Republic on pastoralism and cross-border transhumance that opened on Thursday April 26, that open grazing of cattle needs to be reviewed in favour of ranching.
Represented by the Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo, the president who declared the meeting open, noted that ranching is the most productive method of modern animal husbandry adding that for West Africa to curb the damaging conflict it must meet this global standard.
Osinbajo submitted that the increasing deaths and destruction associated with the conflict has increased the tension which has now been intertwined with ethnic and religious sentiments and compounded by criminal banditry. He pointed out that the current crisis was triggered by competition for water and fodder, which are increasingly shrinking due to the negative impacts of climate change.
“In recent years we have seen an alarming escalation in tension between crop farmers and pastoralists across West Africa and even though these tensions have their origins in the competition for resources sooner than later they become overlaid or intertwined with ethnic, religious and partisan grievances. This is complicated by the actions of criminal bandits who have taken advantage of the proliferations of illegal weapons as well as our porous borders across West Africa. Clearly the importance of regional cooperation in border management, in law enforcement and in identity management cannot be overemphasized,” he said.
He noted that although the 1979 ECOWAS Protocols on Free Movement of Peoples and Goods guarantee free movement of goods and services, “Nigeria can no longer allow the undocumented movement of goods and people that simply contribute to our security challenges. We must ensure that the protocols are complied with and the sections are duly followed.”
He added that the 1998 Protocol relating to Transhumance can be activated to address the crisis warning that the crisis could cause serious food insecurity in the sub-region if not curbed since over 70% of the population depends on crop production for their survival.
President of the ECOWAS Commission, Jean Claude Kassi Brou in his remarks said that despite the fact that West Africa has been recognized as livestock producing region, with 60 million heads of cattle, over 160 million small ruminants and well over 400 million poultry, the region has witnessed a deterioration in pastoralism and Transhumance both within countries and between member states of the community and neighbouring countries.
“In recent years, we have recorded numerous cases of conflicts, which unfortunately claimed human lives, caused forced population displacements, led to erroneous stigmatization of ethno-linguistic and cultural groups against a backdrop of insecurity and terrorism, resulted in the adoption of legal texts by countries to delay, prevent or prohibit the movement of cattle.
“In addition to demographic growth, rapid urbanization, climate change, limited farmland, poor implementation of transhumance management systems and mechanisms and inadequate investment in livestock farming are factors that have contributed to undermining the sector and to reducing the availability of natural open fields.
“Admittedly, the challenges abound, but the principles of regional integration and solidarity spur us to work together to find sustainable solutions for the security of people, modernisation of animal production systems, respect for the cultural and sociological diversity of people, which are the strength and assets of ECOWAS and its Member States,” Brou concluded.
In his reactions, Nigeria’s Minister of Agriculture, Audu Ogbe, said that Nigeria’s solution to the crisis is that open grazing of cattle has to end because the herders have exploited it to allegedly shoot and kill farmers and sometimes wipe out an entire community especially in Nigeria.
“It is time for us to consider ending an old culture that allows free movement of cattle. We must establish ranches to meet global standards,” he said.
The Minister however, acknowledged that ranching is not cheap stressing that the government has to seek international assistance to help cattle farmers to subsidize ranching. He noted that the average cow needs about 40 litres of water and 10 kilograms of fodder, per day, which is not cheap.
Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary General for West Africa, Mohammed Ibn Chambas said: “It is clear that pastoralism and transhumance constitute a regional problem, and therefore require a regional approach to effectively address them.
“Conflicts between herders and farmers have an impact on national and regional human security, hamper economic development and tear communities apart. Most livestock-related conflicts in the region stem from increased competition between herders and farmers for access to water and pasture,” he said.
To resolve these conflicts in the long term, there is a need to address the underlying causes, including land and water issues, rural land management and climate change, IbnChambas warned.
“There are already good initiatives in place to foster peaceful coexistence between herders and farmers throughout the region. It is crucial to enhance these programmes and extend them to ECOWAS Member States that are yet to implement them,” he added.
He reaffirmed the commitment of the United Nations Office for West Africa to support ECOWAS and its Member States to curb conflicts between herders and farmers.
Proposals and recommendations for peaceful resolution of conflicts between farmers and herders in the Community will be submitted to the Heads of State and Government of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) at their next session in Lomé, Togo.
Despite these efforts to end the conflict, many people believe thatthe recommendations being put forward by the Nigerian government and others may remain on paper except the regional bloc takes drastic actions to stop open grazing.
Innocent Odoh, Abuja
