State Fragility and the Accentuation of Conflict in Nigeria A Critical Evaluation of Herdsmen-Farmers’ Conflict in The Fourth Republic

Abstract

In developed nations where the government and its institutions are strong, the tendency for resolving conflicts promptly and dispassionately is usually high. In Nigeria, however, conflicts are generally intractable to resolve due to the fact that the government with its institutions is ostensibly regarded by the citizens as weak and bias because of the need to realise vested interest of entrenching Fulani hegemony. This paper examines state fragility and the accentuation of conflict in Nigeria focusing on herdsmen-farmers’ conflicts in the fourth republic. It adopts descriptive method of research, using the secondary sources of data, while failed state theory and frustration-aggression theory were employed as theoretical tools of analysis. The paper contends that factors like climate change, resources, water, porosity of borders, ethnic/religious bias, among others, prompted the herdsmen-farmers conflict. It further argued that the weakness of government and the declining state capacity resulting in government inability to discharge its responsibility of providing security for its citizens accentuated the crisis thereby bringing about loss of lives, wanton destruction of properties, and displacement of people and desertion of communities in Nigeria. It averred that government inept attitude towards resolving the conflict made the efforts of stakeholders inadequate and ineffective thus making the conflict apparently hydra-headed and multifaceted. The paper thus recommends, among others, that government should strengthen the various security outfits in order to cope with the enormity of herdsmen-farmers conflict; eschew ethnic/religious bias in dealing with the prevalent herdsmen-farmers conflict; implement the laws regulating the acquisition and use of arms without any bias by ensuring that those who flout the law are sanctioned accordingly. In addition, government should embark on enlightenment campaign to educate citizens on the need for tolerance and peaceful co-existence.