TITLE:
Geospatial Technology Potentials in Reawakening the Consciousness of Soil Distribution in Nigeria’s North-Central Region and Mediating the Herdsmen-Farmers Conflicts
AUTHORS:
Ugonna C. Nkwunonwo, Francis I. Okeke, Emmanuel N. Chiemelu, Elijah S. Ebinne
KEYWORDS:
Herdsmen, Sedentary Farmers, North-Central Region of Nigeria, GIS, Digital Soil Map, Food Security, Conflict Resolution
JOURNAL NAME:
Journal of Geoscience and Environment Protection,
Vol.7 No.2,
February
27,
2019
ABSTRACT: The pervasive herdsmen-farmers conflicts in the north-central region of Nigeria
have changed the narrative of Nigeria’s enduring ethnic crises to ideologies,
which are in-controvertibly sinister. The consequences of this tension,
which has defied possible military responses, political, religious and cultural
strategies are potentially devastating, not just for Nigeria, but the whole of
West African region. Since the particular nature of these conflicts increasingly
highlights the significance and inevitability of land resources for crops
farming and cattle rearing, it is imperative to create awareness of the elemental
nature of soils, especially their diversities in these conflict-prone areas.
This study’s objective was to produce a Geographic Information System (GIS)
based digital soil map (DSM) of the north-central region of Nigeria, and to
delineate soil distribution and unique properties. Based on this study, the
DSM offers a quick access to quantitative soil data covering the study area. It
indicates that soil mapping units 15d, 18d and 24b are dominant, and constitute
about 40% of the local arable lands. The broad pattern of distribution of
these soils reflects both the climatic conditions and the geological structure of
the region. The soils are highly weathered with limited capacities to supply
essential nutrients needed by crop plants. These issues raise a number of
questions, most of which focuses on the best possible way to maximize these
soils to accommodate both crop farming and cattle rearing. It is our hope that
taking the advantage of GIS to stimulate the knowledge and consciousness of
soil distribution in the region will place the weight where it is appropriate in
terms of food security through crops production and cattle rearing, and hence
forge a more realistic pathway to reconciliation and conflict resolution.