00:06Jataw Michael and his brothers conduct irrigation farming on the outskirts of Joss,
00:11using water from this stream for their Irish potato farm.
00:14He says they've had to contend with herders who bring their cattle to drink
00:19and sometimes stray into their farm, damaging crops.
00:22When you try to talk to them, it became something else.
00:25Some of my brothers, precisely, that they face this kind of challenges
00:28to the extent that some lost their life.
00:30I was in Bokos.
00:31The incident that happened in 2023, 2024, I'm one of the eyewitnesses.
00:36Herders say the search for water for their cattle has also affected their livelihoods and economic well-being.
00:43We try our best to control our livestock when we take them to drink water,
00:48but sometimes it can be overwhelming, I acknowledge.
00:51But the annoying part is many crop farmers don't like seeing us take our cattle to rivers
00:56when they are in natural creation, so sometimes conflict erupts.
01:00Nigeria has one of the world's worst rates of water access.
01:04The United Nations says over 100 million people in the country lack access to water for their basic daily needs.
01:12The situation gets worse during the dry season, which spans from November to March,
01:17where little rain falls and water sources dry up.
01:21Crops have been destroyed, and animals too have been killed in retaliation.
01:26So the struggle for water is quite severe.
01:32One of the major impacts of climate change is the fact that water sources have shrunk,
01:39and some have even dried off completely.
01:41The conflict was led to reduced food cultivation,
01:44with the World Food Programme projecting that about 35 million people in the country
01:49will experience food insecurity this year.
01:52Analysts say the government must do all it can to ensure availability of water to all.
01:57There has to be deliberate effort at trying to compromise and share,
02:03because everybody deserves the right to exist.
02:06If they are able to acquire ranches of their own and put in the needed facilities,
02:10then that will reduce the likelihood of any conflict as a result of water source.
02:17The government says it is working towards the provision of water for all by 2030,
02:22in line with the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
02:25It has established river basin development authorities to manage water resources,
02:30while also turning to the private sector to invest in water supply.
02:35It has created a livestock ministry,
02:37mandating it to come up with initiatives to ensure conflict between crop farmers and pastoralists is reduced.
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