The non-governmental organization Synergos Nigeria has launched a pilot program for the integration of farming and pastoral communities in parts of Kaduna, Benue and Kogi.
Victoria Fajamillin, Policy Advisor, Synergos Institute, Abuja, reported to the Nigeria News Agency during a workshop organized to develop an action plan for a pilot program in Kaduna.
Fajemillin said that integrated communities will be created simultaneously in the three states between this year and December 2018.
NAN reports that a non-governmental organization working within the framework of the State Partnership of the Federal Government in Agriculture in 2017 recommended the National Policy on Grazing and Development to solve the problems of farmers / herders.
He also recommended the development of integrated settlement / livestock schemes in areas prone to clashes between farmers and herdsmen in order to encourage them to live together.
She said: “We are launching a pilot for integrated settlements for sowing / animal husbandry as a follow-up to the analysis of pasture control that we conducted last year in Synergos through Kogi, Benue and Kaduna.
“What we basically do from the point of view of this pilot phase is to test some of the recommendations that we gave at the first stage.
“Part of the recommendation was not only to manage the conflict between herders and farmers, but also to enable young people and women in society to engage in small business while living in a peaceful way.
“This will prevent most of these conflicts in these areas and in other areas.
“We will use the program to measure the impact of the intervention and see how it will expand over time to other areas.
“We have quite a few livestock breeders and farmers in selected communities, and we actually give them training in conflict resolution, peace building and pasture production to increase their productivity.”
NAN also reports that this plan also recommended the establishment of livestock farms to limit the movement of herders.
She said: “If it is fully implemented, it will improve the livelihood and lifestyle of young people and women in selected pastoralists and farming communities in these states.
"The program will also discuss ongoing conflicts between communities, as well as increasing crop production and livestock production to improve the country's food security."
It should be recalled that the clash of farmers and a tribe in three states led to the fact that hundreds of people died and thousands of animals were killed or rustled.
According to her, agriculture and pastures are enterprises, since they participate in them, they should be able to make a profit and live better.
She said that training for an organized market settlement system would be organized to encourage women’s entrepreneurship in these areas.
Fajemilin said: “We have been working for these three months to solve some of these problems, with the goal of expanding the scope of activities in other areas over time.
"This is the baseline of the program, so after a few years not a single child from these states and other areas will be affected or included in such crises."
According to her, there will be a package for solving the problems of basic education for youth and women in these communities.
She added: “Attending schools will help them create opportunities for organizing their business and lifestyle in a way that is better for communities and states.”
She said that the program would be implemented without disrupting the lifestyle of the members of the communities.
In addition, a resource specialist and program consultant, Dr. Saleh Momale, told NAS that the program will promote integrated plant and animal husbandry in these areas.
Momale said: “The goal is to try to work with farmers and herdsmen in order to increase the specific productivity of crops and livestock and create more harmonious relations between the groups.
“It also aims to educate communities and provide them with the skills necessary to ensure more efficient use of resources, in particular for terrestrial waters and pastures.
“This will allow young people and women to contribute more to the work they do, such as processing crops, marketing crops, processing and marketing livestock products.
“The pilot program will create local distribution capacity for workers and allow them to work more effectively with farmers and herders in communities where the pilot intervention will take place.
“Waiting works together with herders and farmers to share the same resources in a friendly and cordial manner and improve the quality of these resources in their area.
“This will help increase the livelihoods of farmers and pastoralists, reduce the tendency towards violent conflict, and also contribute to Nigeria’s food security needs.”
