This report aims to identify practical strategies for reducing farmer-herder conflicts in Sudan and Nigeria by analysing land use dynamics. Farmer-herder conflicts (FHCs) in Sudan and Nigeria are among the most persistent and destabilising forms of resource-based violence in sub-Saharan Africa.
They are shaped by longstanding political, historical, socio-economic, and environmental processes that have altered the balance between farming and pastoralism. In Sudan, decades of state policies that prioritise mechanised agriculture and land privatisation have marginalised pastoralists and eroded customary land tenure. In Nigeria, demographic pressure, expansion of croplands into grazing reserves, and weak implementation of the Land Use Act have led to intensified competition between herders and settled farmers.
At the same time, climate change, droughts, conflict-driven displacement, and environmental degradation continue to reduce the availability of fertile land and water. These pressures are compounded by governance failures, land grabs, and tenure insecurity, all of which heighten the likelihood of disputes turning violent.
Using two focal sites - Azaza Sogora in Gadarif, Sudan, and Awe Local Government Area in Nasarawa, Nigeria - this report aims to inform policymakers, donors, civil society organisations, and local communities about how to better align land management with peacebuilding. To this end, we identify practical strategies for reducing farmer-herder conflicts in Sudan and Nigeria by analysing land use dynamics.