Looming Conflict Between Fulanis, Farmers In Mion District

Civil society organization, GDCA, raising serious concern over the marauding and destructive activities of some Fulani herdsmen in the Mion District of the Northern Region, and urges the District Security Council to place the issue on its radar.

According to the Ghana Developing Communities Association (GDCA), the activities of the Fulani herdsmen is causing insecurity, citing the destruction of farms, water bodies and raping of women in the district.

Abdulai Salam, Field Facilitator of Empowerment for Life (E4L) programme jointly being implemented by GDCA and Youth Empowerment for Life (YEfL) in the Mion District, disclosed this at a quarterly media review meeting organized by GDCA in Tamale.

The media review meeting was organised to take stock of activities carried out in the last quarter and strategise on the next planned of activities to be executed. It also serves as a platform for journalists to give appropriate advice to the E4L Team on how it could effectively implement some of its activities. 

Agriculture is the major economic activity of the people in the district. But the activities of the Fulani herdsmen is said to be affecting agriculture production leading to low yields in recent years. As a result, there is constant brewing of tension between the Fulani herdsmen and the people of Mion especially farmers. 

According to Mr. Salam, there is urgent need for government’s intervention in the matter because activities of the herdsmen have become “a threat to the livelihoods and security of the people”.  

He called for support from chiefs, citizens and other stakeholders in the district to immediately tackle the unlawful activities of the Fulanis in the area in order to maintain law and order. 

E4L is implemented in 15 Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) in the Northern Region of Ghana. They include Tamale Metroplis, Yendi Municipality, Tolon-Kumbungu, Savelugu-Nanton, Karaga, Gushiegu, Saboba, Chereponi, Nanumba North, Nanumba South, Zabzugu, West Mamprusi, East Gonja, West Gonja and Kpandai Districts.

The first phase was between 1^st January, 2010 and 31^st December, 2011 whereas the second began in 1^st January 2012 and ended 31^st December 2014. Currently, the programme is on its third phase which started in January 2015 and expected to end in 2018.

E4L aims at empowering the poor, vulnerable and marginalised groups in the target MMDAs to have the capacity and ability to improve their quality of life through education, employment, local organisation as well as better access to and management of food and water resources through a rights based approach.

E4L is also relying on strategies that will focus more on advocacy as compared to service delivery and tracking all root causes of inequalities and making them known to those who should fulfil those rights.

Alhaji Abdul-Rahman Osman Executive Director of GDCA said communities in the beneficiary MMDAs are gradually becoming highly aware of their rights and responsibilities, and work together on critical issues affecting their progress. 

“Unions are formed to organise communal labour in support of development in their areas. Established community advocacy groups have received attention from duty bearers through the provision of water facilities and agricultural services, especially in the Karaga District and Yendi Municipality.” 

According to him, under the first phase of the programme, over 5,062 out-of-school children became literates in their mother tongue under a School for Life (SfL) literacy programme, stressing that out of the figure 4,369 graduates were integrated into the formal school system by the end of September 2010. 

He also cited the Nawuni and Eastern Corridor Roads as some of the achievements of the E4L programme and commended the media for the effective collaboration between them and his organization.