నైరూప్య

Threats to Aquatic and Terrestrial Faunal Resources in Nigeria: The Nexus for Mitigating Future Tribal and Boundary Conflicts

Amah Joseph Idu

Resource conflicts are persistent the world over since the lives of the people, to some extent, depend on the outcome. In present day Nigeria, a lot of skirmishes between Fulani nomads and some host communities over grazing land for cattle are in the front burner. A Southward migration of nomads for grazing lands has been met with stiff opposition from host communities. The Niger Delta is the main resource hub of Nigeria due to its petroliferous on shore and offshore areas. The pollution of the creeks and inland waterways and the depletion of aquatic species due to eutrophication is clearly the major cause of oil infrastructure vandalization and sabotage. In the Sahel Savanna in the far north, climate change, human development, effects of land use practices and mismanagement of established grazing reserves have brought great stress on the land available for crop growth and sustenance of animals. This state of affairs underscores the sharp resource divide amongst the ecological zones of Nigeria and the potentials for conflict generation. The coastal areas no longer enjoy the rich aquatic resources due mainly to oil pollution effects on the ecosystem. This situation is exacerbated by the conquering posture of the South-bound nomads which tends to bring about tribal and boundary conflicts. This paper focuses on the unfolding scenarios in Nigeria due to unplanned resource management. The situation is not beyond remediation. The starting point is the restoration of existing reserves in the north and education of the herdsmen. The Niger Delta pollution problems must be clearly and transparently pursued. The bottom line is the management of available land and water resources especially the aquatic and terrestrial zoological resources