In the news
On 7 April, Daily Sabah reported that 52 people were killed and nearly 2,000 were displaced in a series of attacks by gunmen in the Bokkos district of the Plateau state. According to the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA): "Over 1,820 individuals have been displaced. Three displacement camps have been established." 

On the same day, Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu directed security agencies to hunt down the attackers, who would face “severe punishment.” 

Issues at large
First, a brief background to farmer-herders clashes in Nigeria. The north-central state of Benue, Plateau, and Nasarawa, known as the middle belt, has been an epicentre for farmer- herder conflicts since 2014. Plateau state consists of 40 ethnic groups. The farmer-herder clashes are an ethno-religious conflict mainly between Muslim Fulani herders and Christian farmers from the Berom and Irigwe ethnic groups. In  2017, the Benue state enacted a law prohibiting open grazing and building ranches for the rearing of livestock, ending herders' habit of roaming freely. The anti-grazing law resulted in an influx of herders to the neighbouring states of Plateau and Nasarawa. This exacerbated the tensions and increased the number of clashes in the Plateau and Nasarawa states.

Second, the farmer- herder clashes in recent years. The origins of the farmer-herder clashes are first recorded in the 13th and 14th centuries. However, it became a national security threat after the formation of independent Nigeria in 1960. The number of attacks and clashes has increased recently; there was an attack in Katsina state in June 2024, a violent attack in Zurah village of Plateau state in May 2024, Nasarawa state clashes in 2024, and Benue state from January 2023 to February 2024. In December 2023, there was a devastating attack in 18 villages in Bokkos LGA, which also spilled to Barkin Ladi LGA. The increasing number of attacks and clashes are attributed to ineffective legislations and lack of political will to address the grievances of the communities, rapid urbanisation, shift from an agricultural economy, lack of and restricted access to farmland and grazing land, migration of herders, population growth and climate change.

Third, factors behind farmers-herders clashes. The farmer-herder conflicts are fuelled by competition over limited resources such as land and water. It is exacerbated by climate change, reduction of grazing land through agriculture expansion, desertification, population growth, ethno-religious tensions, and deepening social divisions. According to the US Geological Survey, 84,000 square kilometres of grazing land for the herders were lost to the farmers between 1975 and 2013 in the Middle Belt, which accounted for 38 per cent. Additionally, with the population growth (the UN says Nigeria's population grew by 4,796533 between 2023 and 2024, marking one of the fastest-growing populations in the world), the state has given importance to diversifying its economy towards agriculture and oil. Weak resolution mechanisms led communities to resort to self-help measures, including vigilantism and retaliatory attacks, banditry and cattle rustling, further strained relations between farmers and herders.

Fourth, inadequate state response. In May 2019, former President Mohamoud Buhari approved the RUGA initiative to address the farmer- herder crisis in 11 states. It was suspended in July 2019 after it was protested as a land-grabbing move by the federal government. It was replaced by the National Livestock Transformation Plan (NLTP) 2019- 2028, a ten-year plan. In July 2024, President Bola Tinubu announced the creation of the Ministry of Livestock Development. The livestock reform committee was inaugurated as a long-term solution to the recurring clashes. However, none of the initiatives have made any significant developments to address the clashes.
 
In perspective
First, the significance of the violence and government response. The violence in Nigeria’s Middle Belt between farmers and herders has worsened since 2018 and is currently claiming more than the dreaded Boko-Haram insurgency. The recent attack in Bokkos reflects the inadequacy of reforms and the proper functioning of state institutions to tackle the farmer- herder clashes. 

Second, the capacity of the armed forces. Nigeria’s armed forces are overstretched fighting banditry and Islamic insurgency in the north, and all 36 state and the federal police have failed to address the crisis. Though the security agencies claim to have made arrests in previous attacks, there are no records of convictions for the perpetrators of these crimes. Without fundamental reforms to address the underlying causes behind the farmer-herder problem, the clashes are likely to continue.