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Armed Banditry and Food Security in Northwest Nigeria

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Armed Banditry in Nigeria

Abstract

The devastating and destructive tendency of armed banditry in northwestern Nigeria is alarming. Drawing on failed state theory as a framework of analysis, this chapter argues that large-scale farming and animal husbandry, which are the region’s main economic activities, have been affected due to banditry. The attacks on farmers and farmlands have undermined food cultivation and harvest, leading to regional food shortages. Thousands of farmlands are destroyed or inaccessible, while thousands of cattle and sheep are rustled. Due to scarcity emanating from the decline in food production, basic food prices have skyrocketed. The crisis equally displaced millions of people who could not produce or avoid the price of basic food. Accordingly, this chapter examines the activities of armed bandits and their effects on agro economics and food security—with particular attention to food production, distribution, accessibility, affordability and consumption—in northwest Nigeria and beyond.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Political Science, Federal University Oye-Ekiti, Oye-Ekiti, Ekiti State, Nigeria

    Samuel Oyewole

  2. African Centre for the Study of the United States, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa

    Samuel Oyewole

  3. Department of Political Science and Public Administration, Adeleke University, Ede, Osun State, Nigeria

    Titus Utibe

Authors
  1. Samuel Oyewole
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  2. Titus Utibe
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. School of Area Studies, History, Politics and Literature, University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth, UK

    John Sunday Ojo

  2. School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London, London, UK

    Folahanmi Aina

  3. Political Science Department, Federal University Oye Ekiti, Oye-Ekiti, Nigeria

    Samuel Oyewole

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Oyewole, S., Utibe, T. (2024). Armed Banditry and Food Security in Northwest Nigeria. In: Ojo, J.S., Aina, F., Oyewole, S. (eds) Armed Banditry in Nigeria . Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-45445-5_7

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