Internal Displacement of Farmers and Food Losses in Benue State, Nigeria

Abstract

The study investigated the quantity of food losses from 2016 to 2020 as a result of internal displacement of farmers in Benue State This study employed social survey design. A combination of Cluster sampling, random sampling and purposive sampling was used in selecting 429 respondents for the study and data collected with the use of a well semistructured questionnaire. The result shows that most of the internally displaced farmers 142 (39.4%) were within the age bracket of 56 – 65 years with 225(62.5%) of the female and that a simple majority of the respondents 139(38.6%) had only primary education. majority of the IDPs 112(31.1) are farmers with farming experience of 16 – 20 years. 131(36.4%) and 99(27.5%) of the respondents had farm sizes ranging from 1-2 hectres and 3-4 hectres of land respectively with majority of them having been displaced for over 12months. The results on quantity of food lost indicated a level of decrease in quantity of crop production which is evident that violence and internal displacement have negatively influenced agricultural productivity and investment in the study area. The study recommended a process of peace building which is multi-faceted, involving re-establishing security and law and order; reconstruction and economic rehabilitation; reconciliation and social rehabilitation; and political transition to creating a more accountable governance structures and institutions