Farmers and stakeholders in the Southern region of Nigeria have urged President Bola Tinubu and governors of oil-producing states to take decisive action against herders invading their farms, warning that a repeat of previous years’ destruction could trigger a food crisis and unnecessary conflicts.
The farmers, raising the alarm ahead of the planting season, vowed not to tolerate further incursions into their farmlands, where herders’ cattle graze on and destroy their crops.
They called on authorities to enforce measures that would protect their livelihoods.
The stakeholders, who oppose open grazing, dismissed claims by the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association that herders lack the resources to adopt ranching.
Their concerns come as the National Assembly considers a bill to establish the National Animal Husbandry and Ranches Commission to regulate ranching across the country.
However, Miyetti Allah’s National Secretary, Saleh Alhassan, has rejected the bill, insisting that laws must foster peace rather than disrupt the economy of herders. “This law will not work. You cannot destroy our economy overnight with a pronouncement. They want to push herders into rebellion, and they will fail,” he declared.
The Northern Elders Forum (NEF) has also called for policies that transition herders from open grazing to ranching while safeguarding their interests. NEF spokesperson Abdul-Azeez Suleiman acknowledged the need for sustainable livestock management but emphasized concerns about the bill’s impact on pastoralists’ livelihoods.
Meanwhile, Edo State Chapter Chairman of the All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), Comrade Jay Usiegbu, lamented the influx of herders into the South-South due to crackdowns by the Amotekun security outfit in the South-West.
“In Edo State, farmers in areas like Sobe and Owan couldn’t even access their farms during harvest due to herders’ presence. The government should provide designated ranching land, where herders can graze their cattle for a fee. Anyone caught outside these zones should be treated as a trespasser and prosecuted,” Usiegbu stated.
As tensions rise, stakeholders insist that decisive policies are necessary to prevent further clashes and safeguard food security in the region.