SUMMARY
A major cause of non-state conflicts in Nigeria has been the opposing interests of farmers and herders. The different means of earning an income in turn require quite different usage of land. The typical issue that has on several occasions erupted into conflict has been the destruction of crops by grazing cattle. These conflicts have been numerous, and some of them have even passed the threshold of 25 battle-related deaths and hence been included in the UCDP data. It should be noticed that these groups are not solely defined by the source of income; they are also, as many Nigerians, defined by their ethnicity and/or their faith. Subsequently clashes between herders and farmers can be described in a variety of ways depending on the context and reporting.
The non-state conflict between the Eggon, who are mainly sedentary farmers, and the Fulani, who are mainly pastoralists, has been concentrated to Nasarawa state. While clashes have taken place between the groups previously, the violence escalated significantly during 2014. There are conflicting reports concerning the specific event that triggered the escalation, but there seems to have been some dispute over the use of land involved. The clashes quickly escalated, with both sides launching attacks on villages and communities. The Ombatse group, an ethnically Eggon group or cult with traditional religion at its core, was involved in the clashes.
The Eggon – Fulani conflict must also be viewed in the broader spectrum of the ethnic and religious non-state conflicts that have ravaged Nigeria in the past and intensified with the end of military rule, from 1999 and onwards. The conflicts throughout Nigeria have ethnic, political, economic, and religious components, which have become inextricably linked over time, pitting various groups and alliances of groups against each other along different dividing lines.
The non-state conflict between Eggon and Fulani is first included in UCDP data in 2014. In late August of that year, violent clashes flared up in Nasarawa state, resulting in over 200 battle-related deaths.
