The 21st Century heralded an upsurge of violent conflict between farmers and herders
in the two pastoral corridors of Northeast and Northwestern Nigeria. The Lake Chad
region has been one of the battlefields for these conflicts in recent years. The basin’s
economic potentials for both farming and herding attracted herders from other
ecological zones, in Chad, Niger and Cameroun Republics to settle in the hinterlands
of the Nigerian lake basin. Indeed, violence became common and widespread
between newly arrived herders and their host farmers leading to several killings and
destructions. The study utilized In-depth Interview, Focus Group Discussion, Nonparticipant
observation in eliciting data from targeted respondents [farmers; herders;
traditional leaders and government officials]. The study found out that, factors such
as inadequate grazing reserve and stock routes; changes in land tenure system;
insufficient legislation pastoralism; expansion in agricultural policies; economic
factors and climate change are the long-term causes of the conflict. While crop
damage; cattle raids; ethnicity and socio-cultural believes; the role of the state;
political factor and herders’ aggressive behaviors have been responsible for the
immediate causes of farmer-herder conflicts in the Lake Chad region. The study also
found out that, there exist traditional and modern approaches through which farmerherder
conflicts are manage in the study area. The traditional approaches include
social, economic, political and traditional leadership. While administrative,
legislative and judicial constitute the modern approaches. In conclusion, both farmers
and herders believe that the evolution of modern state has altered their communitybased
traditional conflict management systems that developed on the sanctity of
traditional norms and values. Finally, the study articulated an alternative proposal for
managing of farmer-herder conflict in a plural society like Nigeria, which
emphasizes prevention strategies through good governance.