ARMED BANDITRY AND THE CHALLENGES OF FOOD SECURITY IN NORTH WEST NIGERIA

Abstract

What started as social conflict between herders and farmers over land resource control has recently metastasised to armed banditry. The consequence of this misadventure is the loss of lives and property; loss of means of livelihood; internal displacement of people; kidnapping for ransom, sexual assault against women and children; raid on towns and villages; cattle rustling and above all food insecurity. This is attributed to the failure of successive and present administration to address the issues of poverty, unemployment, population explosion and desertification exacerbated by climate change. Nearly all the States in the northern region of Nigeria that heavily relied on subsistence and commercial agricultural production are facing the threat of armed banditry. States such as Benue, Kaduna, Katsina, Kebbi, Nasarawa, Niger, Plateau, Sokoto and Zamfara, have been affected by towering levels of cattle rustling and armed banditry, with the rural populace and farming communities as casualties and victims. It is against this backdrop this paper sought to examine the effect of armed banditry on food security in Northwest Nigeria. The methodology adopted is purely qualitative; data was sourced from both primary and secondary sources. The paper argues that improving the socio-economic condition of the Nigerian people will go a long way in minimizing security threats in the country.