Violent farmer–herder conflicts in Ghana

Constellation of actors, citizenship contestations, land access and politics

Dados Bibliográficos

ID18949367
AutoresKaderi Noagah Bukari (0000-0003-2266-8215, University of Cape Coast, autor correspondente)
Ano2023
Volume57
Fascículo1
Páginas115-137
Data de publicação2023-01-02
Peer ReviewedSim
Open AccessNão
TipoARTICLE
PeriódicoCanadian Journal of African Studies / Revue canadienne des études africaines (JOURNAL)
Identificadores do periódicoISSN: 0008-3968 • E-ISSN: 1923-3051
EditoraInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/00083968.2022.2031235
OpenAlexW4221119303
IdiomaEN
Citações recebidas9
Referências citadas38

This paper presents evidence from two cases in Ghana (Agogo and Gushiegu) to examine why farmer–herder conflicts escalate into violence. It argues that aside from resource competition, and crop damage, there are multi-faceted and dynamic processes and factors involved. The cases show that such violent conflicts can be explained by a constellation of actors, politics, land access and citizenship contestations. Many actors are important in this escalation. Local citizenship discourses and framing of conflicts are intricately linked to struggles over access to land and resources through which actors mobilize for violence. Both farmers and herders see cattle owners, chiefs, politicians, local groups and government officials as responsible for mobilizing and inciting violence and clandestinely using politics and citizenship in access to resources. At the same time, farmer–herder conflicts generate internal struggles between those who have interests in cattle (herders/businessmen and chiefs/elders) and those who have no such interests (young first-comer “cattleless” farmers)

Citizenship · Framing (construction) · Geography · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Sociology · Agriculture, Land Use, Rural Development · Law · Political Conflict and Governance · Rangeland Management and Livestock Ecology