Effect of Banditry Activities on Livelihood Status of Farming Households in Niger State, Nigeria

Abstract

Armed banditry as a global pandemic has a crippling social, political and economic consequence that tends to be threatening the overall developmental efforts of the affected areas. The aim of this study is to examine the effect of banditry activities on livelihood of farming households in Niger state, Nigeria. A multi-stage purposive sampling technique was adopted, and data were collected from 150 respondents using a semi-structured questionnaire and analysed using descriptive statistics, livelihood index and Probit regression model. The study showed that majority of the respondents (63.3%) were married, and their predominant age mean of 43 years. In terms of educational attainment, (86.0%) of the respondents had formal education. Poverty/poor governance, competition for land and water, and social inequality were ranked the topmost factors promoting rural banditry in the study area. While male farmers, female farmers and male youth were the most vulnerable groups of rural banditry attack. The result revealed that (52.0%) of the farmers in the study area had ‘very high’ livelihood status before the effect of banditry activities compared to (60.0%) have low livelihood status after or during banditry activities respectively. The probit regression model result shows that burning and raiding of farmland, killing and kidnapping, destruction of farmland, frequency of insurgency and household size were the negative effect of banditry on farmers livelihood status. While farming experience and access to credit were positively influencing the livelihood status of the rural farmers. The result concludes that the livelihood status of the farmers was very low after the incidence of banditry activities in the study area. Recommendations made based on the findings of this study include Extension workers should assist farmers to form viable co-operative associations, government at all levels should put in place functional security system like community policing to supplement the operations of other security agencies.