CONFLICTS AND THE RETROGRESSION OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT: THE POLITICAL ECONOMY OF HERDERS-FARMERS’ CONFLICTS IN NIGERIA

Purpose: The study draws attention to the negative impacts that the conflicts between Fulani herders and farmers have had on Nigeria’s national development, especially on its quest to achieve food security while repositioning agriculture as a major player in the economy. It further draws attention to the serious danger these conflicts pose to the country’s socio-economic and political sustainability. The study attempts to illuminate the disconnect between these conflicts and the actualization of the twin goals of “no poverty” and “zero hunger” as encapsulated in the Sustainable Development Goals 1 and 2. Methodology: This study generated both primary and secondary data to evaluate the socio-economic and political implications of the herders-farmers conflicts in Nigeria. While the primary data were generated through the instrumentality of key informant interviews (KIIs), the secondary data were obtained from archival materials and other published works. Main findings: The study found that herders-farmers conflicts have inflicted serious costs on the Nigerian economy in terms of loss of resources and human lives. It also found that these conflicts have jeopardized the prospects of meeting the global goals of poverty eradication and zero hunger. The study equally found that the government has no specific set of strategies to contain the conflicts and that its equivocation and unwillingness to prosecute the architects and perpetrators of the conflicts has emboldened them. Social Implications: The herders-farmers conflicts have had serious impacts on the people. These impacts include human fatalities, social dislocations, especially displacement and disruption of people’s livelihood patterns and the exacerbation of poverty. Originality/Novelty: The originality of the study derives from its successful establishment of wider links between the Fulani herders-farmers conflicts and the prospects of the country derailing in repositioning the agricultural sector and meeting the global goals of poverty reduction and food security