How Many Nigerians Have Really Died In Farmer/Herders Clashes?

Violent clashes between herdsmen and farmers, especially in the North Central states of Benue and Nasarawa have led to the death of hundreds of Nigerians and heightened ethnic tensions across the country.

Several figures have been bandied about the casualties of these clashes but there does not seem to be an accurate and reliable data yet.

There have been reports of herders/farmers killings across fourteen states of the country namely Benue, Adamawa, Plateau, Zamfara, Taraba, Kaduna, Nasarawa, Niger, Kogi, Sokoto, Enugu, Delta, Cross River and Oyo.

Different groups have investigated these clashes and came up with different casualty figures. So far only two major researches have been conducted on the herdsmen/farmers clashes by the Amnesty International and USAID.

Many believe that lack of reliable statistics on deaths caused by the numerous violence have in itself caused ethnic tension in communities involved in these clashes.

Contradictory Figures

Amnesty International (AI)

Amnesty International (AI) in December 17, 2018 disclosed that the conflict between farmers and herders across Nigeria resulted in at least 3,641 deaths in the past three years and that thousands were displaced.

The group which made this known in its report, “Harvest of Death: Three Years of Bloody Clashes Between Farmers and Herders” said 57% of the 3,641 recorded deaths occurred in 2018.

It further said the research covered clashes between farmers and herders from January 2016, between August 2017 and September 2018 in 10 field trips to 56 villages in five states.

The five states where attacks were most frequent are Adamawa (540), Benue (726), Kaduna (414), Taraba (453) and Plateau (492). Other parts of the country including Enugu, Ondo, Oyo, Delta and Edo also recorded attacks.

USAID Figures

On May 23, a report funded by the United States Agency for International Development, USAID disclosed that as result of the persistent violence between farmers and pastoralists in the middle belt states of Benue and Nasarawa, an estimated 7,000 Nigerians have died between 2015 and 2019.

The report titled “Engaging Communities for Peace in Nigeria (ECPN),” also noted that the violence has cost the Nigerian economy $13 billion a year over the past five years.

MAFO Disagrees

 But a non-government organisation (NGO) Movement Against Fulani Occupation (MAFO), said the AI report, which chronicles herdsmen killing of farmers, fell short of the standard expected of a reputable human rights organisation.

In a speech read by its spokesman Terence Vembah at the media briefing, the NGO faulted the AI figure of 726 deaths in the state, saying: “The report on Benue killings is a gross misrepresentation of facts and figures on the true picture of the atrocities committed by the invaders on Benue soil aimed at turning down the exact number of the casualties from the carnage.

“In Agatu alone, herdsmen attacked and killed 3,920 persons, and it was established, just as the report also failed to capture the colossal damage to property in farmland and other socio- economic bases of Benue communities.”

MAFO rejected the AI report, saying it lacked the vital ingredients of the state’s perspective, especially as related to the killing.

Accurate Data

So far there does not appear to be an accurate data on the herdsmen/farmer clashes in Nigeria.