Climate Change and Farmer-Herder Conflicts in West Africa
Publisher: Springer
Author(s): Charlène Cabot
Date: 2016
Topics: Climate Change, Conflict Causes
Nomadic and semi-nomadic herders such as the FulBe have a long history of migrating and also of building relationships with various sedentary farming populations in West Africa. These contacts can take various forms, from coexistence to cooperation or competition and even to conflicts over shared natural renewable resources, namely fresh water and land, which can be referred to as Common-Pool Resources(CPRs) . The effects of climate change are already being felt in these regions, and the IPCC forecasts that they will significantly increase, with more irregular precipitation and rising temperatures. These changes could aggravate land degradation and increase the frequency of droughts, and consequently lead to declining food production and a decline in the availability of water. Climate change is thus putting a strain on delicate relationships between farmers and herders, because of its effect on CPRs. Herders and farmers of the drylands of West Africa are indeed highly vulnerable to changes in the availability of CPRs. In a context where the object of the conflict plays (or is perceived to play) a key role in the survival of the parties, there are risks of an escalation to violence and a destabilization of the security of both communities. Agro-pastoral conflicts might increase in frequency and intensity in the coming years. However, a conflict reduction lens can be applied to these climate-change-induced or -aggravated farmer–herder conflicts over CPRs in general and in particular in West Africa.