Presidency welcomes report to U.K parliament on herder-farmer clashes

The Presidency has welcomed the recent report to the British Foreign & Commonwealth Office – specifically the British Government’s new focus on herder-farmer clashes.

A statement by the Senior Special Assistant on Media and publicity, Garba Shehu, said that engagement with various stakeholders is key to breeding the dialogue and – most importantly – trust to resolve the age-old conflict.

As the report sets out, he said that there are many causes to the conflict, ranging from competition over land to climate change.

According to him, the National Livestock Transformation Plan sets out to deal with these by preventing open grazing of cattle and – consequently – the destruction of crops.

Enclosed ranching, he said, is a core component of the programme.

“For farmers, this guarantees their yield and livelihoods. For herders, all livestock produce more meat and milk in a ranch rather than being always on the move.

“These plans do not come at one or another’s expense. Instead, they shall make both farmers and herders richer. We must learn to live together because there isn’t another way. Our diversity should never be a cause for conflict, but a source of strength from which the nation can draw.

“The report also highlighted the threat from Boko Haram in their mission to establish an “Islamic state” in place of the secular state. Where the group once administered territory, they now hold on to none. In those fringe areas and spaces where they still pose a threat, they are being chased, their bases smashed. In this second term, we shall focus on extinguishing the final remnants of the group.

“As President Buhari reasserted at Easter: “[I will] do all it takes to… confront these security challenges [and] not allow merchants of death and evil to overwhelm the nation.”