Management of Farmer-herdsmen Conflicts in North Central Nigeria: Implications for Collaboration between Agricultural Extension Service and other Stakeholders

Incessant resource-based conflicts between farmers and herdsmen continue to undermine the impact of agricultural extension service delivery in Nigeria. This study focuses on the perceptions of conflict and coping strategies among farmers and herdsmen towards identifying a role for Extension in management of farmer-herdsmen conflict. Multi-stage cluster random sampling technique was used to select 300 farmers and 60 cattle herdsmen for the research, using an interviewer-administered questionnaire for data elicitation. Most farmers (78%) perceived the conflict situation as a ‘loss’, while 68% of herdsmen perceived it as ‘threat’. Also, 75% of farmers used ‘problem-oriented’ coping strategies, while 73% of herdsmen mainly used ‘emotion-oriented’ coping strategies. Sixty-two percent of farmers and 7% of herdsmen alternatively used ‘social-support’ strategies. Pearson correlations showed that annual income (r=0.773, p=0.001), farm size (r=0.82, p=0.002), non-farm income (r= -0.71, p=0.003) and household size (r=0.651, p=0.004) were the significant correlates of loss perception among farmers; while among herdsmen, the significant correlates of threat perception were age (r=0.611, p=0.033) and herd size (r=0.814, p=0.002). Furthermore, only 4% of total respondents perceived the conflict situation as ‘opportunity to gain’. The paper concludes that farmer-herdsmen conflicts in Nigeria need not become inflexible as they currently seem, and suggests the setting up of a three-tier farmer-herdsmen conflict management committee. The paper recommends a functional role for Extension in periodic revision and enhanced awareness of and compliance with stock routes, as well as Extension staff and clientele training on appropriate coping mechanisms to douse the socio-psychological effects of conflicts

A presentation of extracts from selected Arabic Ṣūfī manuscripts in Ilorin, Nigeria

This study presents extracts from three Arabic manuscripts amongst Ilorin ..f. writers. It highlights the major themes in the ..f. literature generally and then specifically points out samples of works produced on some of the themes. The themes identified and briefly analyzed are Mad. Nabiyy (Prophetic Eulogy) Mad. r-Rij.l (panegyric of ..f. Shuyukh and Masters), a`t-Tawassul wa`l-Istighathah (Fervent plea for help). The manuscripts studied are in both poetry and prose. The objective of the study is to bring into limelight the Arabic manuscripts of selected ..f.s in Ilorin. The study is based on the analysis of the manuscripts which are in circulation among Arabic scholars and data collected from the private libraries of the Muslim scholars. The research reveals that Ilorin can be projected as a ..f. city of great potentialities

Role of the Sūfis During the Pandemic in a Society: COVID-19 in Nigeria as a Case Study

COVID – 19 is the code given to an infectious disease called Coronavirus. It was on 31st December 2019 that World Health Organization (WHO) was kept informed of its discovery. It was speculated that the disease was first discovered in the Republic of China. It then spread from there to other countries of the world, including Nigeria. Multiple efforts were put in place in an attempt to halt its spread in the country, i.e., Nigeria. One of such was to lockdown the country. The pandemic and lockdown had various effects on society and its people in multiple ways. As a result, people found themselves in a state of frustration and anxiety, looking forward to a remedy and solution. This paper, therefore, determines to examine the role of the Sūfis during this kind of situation with the hope of bringing the role of the Sūfis into the limelight and to put it on record the Sūfi resilience and effort on the spiritual being of the Sūfi adherents at a particular time. The method adopted in this research is based on the interpretative approach in line with the disciplines of Islamic Studies, especially Sufism and history.  The main result of the study reveals that the pandemic has both positive and negative effects on people generally. Finally, through its teachings, Sufism provides resilience to the public, especially its adherents

Role of the Sūfis During the Pandemic in a Society: COVID-19 in Nigeria as a Case Study

COVID – 19 is the code given to an infectious disease called Coronavirus. It was on 31st December 2019 that World Health Organization (WHO) was kept informed of its discovery. It was speculated that the disease was first discovered in the Republic of China. It then spread from there to other countries of the world, including Nigeria. Multiple efforts were put in place in an attempt to halt its spread in the country, i.e., Nigeria. One of such was to lockdown the country. The pandemic and lockdown had various effects on society and its people in multiple ways. As a result, people found themselves in a state of frustration and anxiety, looking forward to a remedy and solution. This paper, therefore, determines to examine the role of the Sūfis during this kind of situation with the hope of bringing the role of the Sūfis into the limelight and to put it on record the Sūfi resilience and effort on the spiritual being of the Sūfi adherents at a particular time. The method adopted in this research is based on the interpretative approach in line with the disciplines of Islamic Studies, especially Sufism and history.  The main result of the study reveals that the pandemic has both positive and negative effects on people generally. Finally, through its teachings, Sufism provides resilience to the public, especially its adherents

DETERMINANTS OF CAPACITY BUILDING NEEDS OF ARTISANAL FISHERS IN KOGI STATE, NIGERIA

Nigerians are high fish consumers as the per capita consumption is 14.9 kg per year and has the largest market for fish and fishery products in Africa. Artisanal fishers provide fish for large proportion of fish consumed by our teeming population. These set of fishers depend on crude gears and technology and small vessels in capturing multiple fish species. This study examined the determinants of the capacity building needs of artisanal fishers in Kogi State, Nigeria. The study used primary data. The primary data were collected using structured questionnaire. Multistage sampling technique was use to select the respondents. A total number of 292 respondents were selected for the study. Data were analyzed using frequency, percentage, mean and Binary Logistic Regression. The results showed that more than half (71.6%) of the respondents had low knowledge level and majority (87.0%) of the respondents had high capacity building needs. The educational status (p<0.10), years of experience in fishing activities (p<0.10), contacts with extension services (p<0.01) and craft type (p<0.05) are the determinants factors of capacity building needs of the artisanal fishers. The study concluded that the majority of the fisher folks had low knowledge level on fishing practices. Majority of the fisher folks had high capacity building needs. The study therefore recommends the provision of training in the areas of high capacity building needs and that there should be consideration of factors influencing the capacity building needs of artisanal fisher folks during the planning and implementation of any training programme on artisanal fisheries

Pre-hospital care in Nigeria: A country without emergency medical services

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