The incessant clashes between farmers and herdsmen are the result of environmental degradation rather than ethnic or religious reasons, the federal government has explained.
The minister of information and culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, made this clarification at a mini-town hall meeting organised for the staff of the Nigerian Embassy in Berlin, Germany.
He, however, gave assurance that the federal government was committed to finding a lasting solution to the clashes. A cross-section of Nigerians residing in the European country on Friday noted that contrary to the narrative in certain quarters giving ethnic and religious coloration to the clashes, they were caused by purely environmental issues.
In a statement signed by a senior assistant to the minister, Segun Adeyemi, and made available to the newsmen yesterday, Alhaji Mohammed noted that whereas Nigeria’s population in 1963 was about 48 million, it is now about 180 million, with the country’s land mass remaining the same. This, he said, means there are more people per square kilometre, which raises the chances of clashes over dwindling resources.
He added that Lake Chad that used to provide water and other resources to more than 30 million people in four countries, including Nigeria, in the early 1960s, had shrunk by about 90 percent from 25,000 square kilometres to 2,500 square kilometres, thus forcing those affected to move south in search of resources.
‘’These and other reasons, like desertification, have altered the resource landscape, heightened competition for dwindling resources and raised the possibility of clashes between farmers and herders,’’ the minister said. According to him, the establishment of ranches is one sure way of reducing such clashes. He, however, said that in resolving the crisis, both the farmers and the herders must be willing to slightly shift their grounds from their positions, which, he said, were as result of their ways of life over the centuries.
Alhaji Mohammed, who is in Berlin to attend a meeting of African Tourism Ministers on the sidelines of the International Travel Trade Fair in the German capital, said contrary to the false reports being peddled in the social media by critics, President Muhammadu Buhari was putting Nigeria back on its feet. ‘’The naysayers have taken to the social media to distort the situation in Nigeria.
They are spending huge amounts of money to spread fake news about Nigeria, hoping it will override the string of achievements by the administration. That is why Nigerians at home and abroad must ensure they have access to authentic information.
One way is to download the FGNiAPP on their hand-held devices. It is free!” The minister reeled out figures to show that Nigeria was on an upward curve. ‘’The economy is on a steady growth, as attested to by the latest report from the National Bureau of Statistics. The economy attracted $12.2 billion in foreign investments in 2017, up from $5.38 billion in 2016.
That represents 138 percent increase. The economy further consolidated its recovery from recession with GDP growing by 1.92 percent in Q4 2017, compared to 1.40 percent in Q3 2017 and a contraction of -1.73 percent in Q4 2016.
This means the economy ended 2017 with a growth of 0.82 percent compared to a contraction of -1.58 percent in 2016. ‘’GDP Growth in Q4 2017 was driven by growth in crop production, crude production and natural gas, metal ores, construction, transportation and storage, trade, electricity and gas production, indicating that the administration’s diversification effort is working,’’ he said. On his part, Nigeria’s ambassador to Germany, Alhaji Yusuf Maitama Tuggar, commended the patriotism and dedication of the Nigerians in Diaspora, especially those in Germany.
‘’There is a burgeoning Nigerian community (in Germany) committed to the prosperity of Nigeria. They are well in tune with the policies of (the Nigerian) government and they are accomplished men and women and worthy ambassadors,’’ he said. In their comments, some leaders of the Nigerian Diaspora commended the government for the progress being made in lifting up the country and stressed the need to step up efforts to ensure the security of life and property in order to attract more foreign investors to the country.
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