PREVENTING VIOLENT EXTREMISM BETWEEN FAMERS AND HERDERS
I. SITUATION
Over the years, there has been population increase in both humans and livestock including the number of people going into crop-farming in the eastern corridor districts of the Northern Region of Ghana – Tatale-Sangule, Zabzugu, Yendi, Mion, Nanumba-North, Nanumba-South, Kpandai, Saboba, Karaga, and Gushegu.
This development is rapidly diminishing access to land and limiting pastures. The result is an unhealthy competition between farmers and Fulbe herders for suitable land for cultivation and grazing respectively, as well as access to water bodies. Sometimes, cattle stray into farms and end up ravaging crops. Farmers retaliate by killing the cattle, mostly on sight. This often escalates into violent conflicts between farmers and Fulbe herders, leading to loss of lives and properties, especially among the Fulbe. The prevailing temperament and behavior of the two groups makes them more susceptible to the influence of violent extremist groups lurking in neighboring countries.
2. INTERVENTION
The goal of the project was to establish enduring peace and inclusive neighborliness among Crop Farmers and Fulbe Herders in the eastern-corridor of the Northern Region.
The project made two separate interventions. The first intervention was between October 2023 and June 2024 in 12 communities in the Saboba, Gushegu and Nanumba-North districts. The communities were: Saboba (Wapuli, Gbangbanpong, Demong and Kpalba); Gushegu (Bulugu, Gaa, Nyensung and Kpahikpaba); Nanumba-North (Dakpam, Juanayili, Bincharatanga and Chamba).
This first intervention was funded by the Public Affairs Section (PAS) of the US Embassy in Ghana.
Based on the success and impact in the first intervention, it was upscaled to 12 other communities in three other districts in May 2024 to January 2025. The districts were: Tatale-Sangule (Nachamba No.2, Nakpali, Kpalbutabu and Bekpanjibi); Yendi (Nagani, Pansiya, Zagbang and Wambong); Karaga (Zankali, Nyong, Pishigu and Shebo). This second intervention was funded by USAID/OTI/LRI.
In all the 24 communities, the project applied the following solutions to the farmer-herder violent conflicts:
1. Formation of Mediation Committees. Each of the 24 communities were facilitated to form 10-member mixed mediation committees, which they named Committee for Cooperation and Social Cohesion (CCSC). The purpose of the CCSC was to use local conflict resolution mechanisms to prevent violence between farmers and herders. Each committee comprised four farmers and four herders with the Assemblymember as the convenor and a religious leader as moderator. In all there were 24 CCSCs with 240 members from farmer and herder communities.
2. Constructive Dialogues Session. The project took the two hundred and forty (240) farmers and herders through cooperative problem-solving and collective action sessions. They identified and listed the key contentious issues and examined their root causes; they noted their positions on each the issues and analyzed their interests, clarified perceptions, including their individual and shared needs. Subsequently, they listed the salient concerning issues, and produced a common vision which, eventually, culminated into a collective agreement. The Collective Agreement, was signed by the Chiefs of the communities, Leaders of the Fulbe communities and witnessed by the Assemblymember. The outcome was a 44-point signed Collective Agreement that became the basic customarily authorized instrument for the promotion of mutual trust and social cohesion in their communities. This session made they farmers and herders confident in each other.
3. Knowledge and skills in Alternative Conflict Resolution (ADR). The CCSCs of 240 farmers and herders underwent a three-day training in ADR with emphasis on mediation. The training was facilitated by the Northern Region Peace Council. They learned subjects including elements of mediation; stages of mediation; role of the mediator; problem solving; agreement and follow up. The training increased their knowledge and skills in mediation and imbued them with confidence to resolve conflicts dispassionately and fairly. They were charged with monitoring the activities of farmers and herders to forestall any violence, receive complaints, mediate and ensure amicable resolution of disputes before they escalate. By the end of the projects the 24 CCSCs had cumulatively resolved 139 cases successfully.
4. Community-wide Awareness Creation. The project created community-wide awareness on the existence of the CCSCs. The CCSCs were inaugurated in their individual communities with fanfare and talks on the remit of the committees. Jingles, announcements and skits were produced and disseminated on community radio stations. It enabled community members, especially other farmers and herders, who were not part of the processes, to be conscious of this novel development, be involved and take advantage. This has helped to reduce violence between farmers and herders in the communities.
RESULTS
The project achieved the following changes:
1. Farmers and herders no longer use violence to resolve conflicts. They report cases to the CCSC for resolution.
2. Mutual trust and understanding among farmers and herders have improved. They interact with each other with mutual respect.
3. District Assemblies are committed to sustaining the work of the CCSCs. CCSCs operate under the Social Justice Committee of the Assembly.
4. Unlike previously, the Fulbe are confident of obtaining justice through the CCSCs.
LESSONS LEARNED.
• Drivers to the conflict such as xenophobia, diminishing farm lands, limited pastures and scarce water sources need to be addressed.
• Cattle Owners should be part of the stakeholders’ consultations.
NEXT STEPS
Farmer-herder violent conflicts are all over most communities in the eastern-corridor of the Northern Region. There are many communities where farmers and herders are still using violence to resolve conflicts. There is the need to upscale to those communities, especially, communities adjoining those that have already benefited from the model the project is using. Upscaling to those communities would help to forestall any insurgence into the violent-free communities and consolidate the much-desired peaceful coexistence between farmers and herders.
RESPONSIBLE HOSTING OF POLITICAL RADIO TALK SHOWS/ NEWSPAPER REVIEW AND TOLERANCE IN ELECTION 2020 IN THE NORTHERN REGION
This project was implemented under the auspices of Electoral Violence Monitoring, Analysis and Mitigation (ENAM), led by WANEP Ghana and funded by the European Union in 2020.
SITUATION
Elections correspond to periods of heightened media coverage and reporting. With each political party wanting to lead the country, these transitional times were often wrought with competitive provocative language, rising tensions, and occasional political violence, sometimes even resulting in violent conflicts. The media is the primary catalyst for these dynamics.
The media landscape in the Northern Region was more volatile as newsmen and women were increasingly becoming susceptible to political manipulation during elections; they inadvertently highlighted the acrimonious campaign messages of candidates instead of focusing on, and drawing the attention of the candidates to the needs and priorities of the electorates, especially the marginalized and the excluded.
INTERVENTION
The project increased the knowledge and skills of 25 radio talk show and newspaper review hosts in ethical broadcast journalism and responsible radio hosting and presenting. “This training will change my approach to hosting, especially in terms of the ethics and the need to prepare adequately through research,” one participant said. Another could not help but say, “I am now aware that what I have been doing is not all that professional. The knowledge and skills I have gained will change the quality of my programme.”
Messages on the need for tolerance and peaceful conduct before, during and after the elections were widely disseminated to the people of the Northern Region. A comprehensive public outreach was carried out in The ADVOCATE newspaper. Three prominent Ghanaian dignitaries were used to deliver messages on the need for tolerance and peaceful conduct before, during and after the elections. They were the President of the Ghana Catholic Bishops Conference who was also the Archbishop of Tamale Catholic Diocese, Most Reverend Philip Naameh; Leader of the Ambariya Sunni Community in the Northern Region, Sheikh Saeed Abubakar Zakaria, and our own late Kofi Annan, former Secretary-General of the United Nations. In the case of Kofi Annan, a peace message he delivered at a CDD Lecture ( Kronti ne Akwamu) in June 2016 was used because it was still relevant at the time.
RESULTS
a. Political talk-show and newspaper review hosts used topical issue-based research, ethical and impartial moderation in their programmes.
b. Elections were largely devoid of violence as supporters of political parties were cautious and tolerance before, during and after the elections.
Sponsors
European Union
Project Duration
Sept - Dec 2020
Project Area
Northern Region
GHANA’S STRENGTHENING ACCOUNTABILITY MECHANISM (GSAM)
SITUATION
Ghana’s Strengthening Accountability Mechanism (GSAM) was a seven-year project (2016-2022) under the auspices of a Consortium – CARE (as the lead), OXFAM and ISODEC – together with the Ghana Audit Service (GAS), and in collaboration with 100 participating Metro/Municipal/District Assemblies and 25 Civil Society Organization (CSOs). It was funded by the USAID.
GSAM was in response to Ghana’s governance and accountability challenges that have included (1) dysfunctional decentralization, (2) inadequate availability of accessible MMDA planning and budget information, and (3) inadequate mechanisms and processes for social accountability.
GSAM sought to “strengthen citizens’ oversight of capital projects to improve local government transparency, accountability and performance”. RUMNET was one of the selected 25 CSOs. It implemented the project in the North Gonja District of the Savanah Region and Tolon District of the Northern Region.
INTERVENTION
Collective Impact implemented the project in seven communities in the Tolon District: Nyankpala, Tuunayili, Warivi, Lingbunga, Tali, Demabi and Gbrumani. The project selected 3 people from each community as Community Development Monitors (CDM). The Capacities of the CDMs were built in capital project monitoring and social accountability. Their knowledge was increased in planning and initiation of projects at the district level; procurement and contracting; project execution and project benefits. The projects also increased citizen oversight of capital projects and participation in the development process through community score cards, town hall meetings and community durbars. Finally, the project improved the responsiveness of the District Assembly in capital project delivery.
The capital development projects were: a three (3) unit classroom block funded by the District Assembly Common Fund (DACF) in Warivi; construction of three (3) unit classroom block in Nyankpala; construction of 3 unit classroom block with ancillary facilities in Lingbunga: construction of a meat shop in Katinga market, Tali; extension of pipe-borne water from Tolon to Demabi; construction of 3 unit classroom block with ancillary facilities in Gbrumani and the construction of CHPs compound in Tuunayili.
RESULTS
The project improved citizens’ oversight of capital development projects as well as transparency and accountability of DAs in capital project delivery.
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