F. A. UYANG ET AL.
and these were compounding the problem of food insecurity in
Nigeria. Izugbara, Ugal, & Ukwayi (2003) and Olayemi (1996)
noted that competition for access to and control of socially va-
lued environmental and economic goods such as land, water re-
sources, and economic trees was responsible for many of the
communal clashes in Nigeria. Studies on the effect of commu-
nal land conflict on food productivity in developing countries
(Ageaoili, Perez, & Rosegrant, 1995; Sambe, Avanger, &
Alakali, 2013; Okpiliya, Ekong, & Eni, 2013) showed that sev-
eral boundary disputes resulting to communal conflict, espe-
cially in Africa have impeded food productivity. Arising from
an empirical study which found a correlation between commu-
nal violence and food security in Africa, Sambe, Avanger, &
Alakali, (2013: p. 46) painted the following scenario:
Communal conflicts are enemies of food security. There
is a well-established correlation between the exposure of
countries to communal conflicts and the deterioration and
long term stagnation of their food security. The conflict
disrupts food production through physical destruction and
plundering of crops and livestock, harvest and food re-
serves. Communal conflicts also prevent and discourage
farming and also interrupt the lives of transportation
through which food exchanges and even humanitarians re-
lief takes place.
Mustapha (2010) observed that the boundary dispute be-
tween Aguleri and Umuleri communities in Anambra State
caused indigenes to become refugees in neighboring towns.
Recently, the devastating effect of the boundary dispute be-
tween the Moon people of Kwande Local Government Area of
Benue state and the Kashimbila community in Takun Local
Government Area of Taraba state was brought to the realm of
political discussion (Salem, 2013).
According to Chizea & Iyare (2006), scramble for scarce
economic resources exacerbate conflict, undermine the rule of
law and spawn a culture of violence and impunity, the cones-
quence of which is a threat to food security. Earlier studies by
scholars have attested to the relationship between scramble for
scarce economic resources and communal conflicts (Onwudiwe,
2004; Irobi, 2005). In a study of the relationship between scram-
ble for scarce economic resources and food security, Hazen &
Horner (2007) found that scramble for scarce resources was on
the increase in Nigeria. Essentially, their study revealed the
scramble engendered communal land conflict, which forced
many people to flee their homes and villages. Thus, they con-
cluded that scramble for scarce economic resources was likely
to increase the problem of food insecurity in Nigeria. Food se-
curity was negatively affected by scramble for scarce economic
resources in other parts of Africa (Migot-Adholla, Peter, Benoit,
& Frank, 1991; Carter, Weibe, & Blarel, 1994).
Land, as unit for agricultural production provides the needed
fulcrum upon which a sustainable development would blossom.
Agricultural production till date remains the mainstay of the
Nigeria economy, despite the exploration and exploitation of
crude oil in the country for more than five decades. It is the
main source of food for most of the population. Agriculture
provides the means of livelihood for over 70 per cent of the
population, a major source of raw materials for the agro-allied
industries and a potent source of the much needed foreign ex-
change. However, over the years, the agricultural sector has
witnessed a tremendous decline due partly to scramble for
scarce economic resources leading to communal land conflicts
with adverse effects on food security (World Bank, 1988).
These conflicts have been a dominant factor of food insecurity
in most rural communities in the developing countries (Drezen
& Sen, 1989).
Also, the exponential increase in human population without a
corresponding increase in land, coupled with devastating natu-
ral disasters, worsen the problem of scramble for land and other
scarce economic resources. According to Kennedy-Echetebu,
Chinweze, & Abiola-Oloke (2011), sub-Saharan Africa which
is already under pressure from population growth, famine,
drought and conflict, increases in biofuel production and con-
comitant land grabs can only contribute to weakening food
security and keeping achievement of the Millennium Develop-
ment Goals far beyond reach. Again, a report by the Norwegian
Refugee Council (2012) found that in both south-eastern Libe-
ria and western Côte d’Ivoire, land disputes remain a major
obstacle to building sustainable peace and a potential threat to
continued development and food security. Disputes over land
are common in all communities visited on both sides of the
border. In this study, we examined the relationship between
factors in communal land conflict and food security in Obudu
Local Government Area of Cross River State, Nigeria.
Methodology
Study Area
The study area was Obudu Local Government Area (LGA)
of Cross River State, Nigeria. It is one of the 18 LGAs that
make up the State. The location of Obudu (6˚20" - 6˚40"N; 8˚4"
- 9˚0"E) and its climatic conditions are conducive for the culti-
vation of a large variety of agricultural products. The soil is
loamy sand mixed with volcanic ash. The LGA covers an area
of 379,164 square kilometres and to the west, it shares a bound-
ary with Bekwarra/Ogoja local Government Areas, to the east
with Obanliku Local Government Area, to the South with Boki
Local Government Area (all in Cross River State) and to the
North with Benue State. Obudu Local Government Area is
made up of five indigenous ethnic communities of Bette, Alege,
Ukpe, Ubang and Utugwang. Obudu enjoys the influence of the
North easterly wind during the dry season and south westerly
wind during the wet season with annual mean rainfall of about
1300 - 2000 millimetres. The main vegetation characteristic of
the area is guinea savannah. The inhabitants of Obudu are most-
ly farmers but the frequent occurrence of communal land con-
flict among communities in the area adversely affects farming
activities. The population of Obudu, according to the 2006 cen-
sus figures was 161,457 and this figure was projected to in-
crease to 322,914 by 2040 (FRN, 2009). Ironically, while the
annual increase in population of the area is about 3 percent,
land, the vital resource at the heart of most communal conflicts,
remains static or even depreciates.
Questionnaire and Data Collection
This was a survey study that relied on the questionnaire as
the major instrument of data collection. The questionnaire was
structured with some open- and close-ended questions. The
close-ended questions were carefully crafted to elicit informa-
tion amenable to easy collation and test of hypotheses. The
open-ended questions though few were put in place to enable
respondents express themselves freely on the phenomenon of
communal land conflict and increasing rate of food insecurity
Open Access
194
