Resilience Or Coping: Adaptive Livelihood Strategies and Their Nutritional Trade-Offs Among Conflict-Affected Pastoralist Communities in Katsina State, Nigeria
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.64321/jcr.v2i4.50Keywords:
Nutrition Trade-offs, Distress Adaption, Banditry Impact, Food Insecurity Pathways, Humanitarian Access Control, Gender MalnutritionAbstract
This paper provides a critical evaluation of the coping mechanisms to livelihood strategies among the conflict-affected pastoralist communities in Katsina State, Nigeria, and its nutritional implications. In the face of increasing banditry, climate taxes and systemic entitlement collapse, pastoralists resort to survivalist mechanisms often mislabeled as resilience. Through a multidimensional analysis, the study demonstrates that distress livestock sales, hazardous labor, forced resettlement, and unfamiliar agriculture largely comprise harmful coping rather than sustainable adaptation. There are severe nutritional trade-offs at work in these coping mechanisms: exhaustion of milk — an important nutrient source for children — results in acute micronutrient deficiencies; market hyperinflation impairs access to a range of foods; and gendered labor burdens take a toll on maternal health and the care of children. There is evidence of catastrophic levels of malnutrition (18.9% GAM) in high-violence LGAs, due to the destruction of livelihoods and shortage of milk. Mothers wasting away (28%) represent double the state average, a result of food rationing, while limited access to healthcare ensures inter-generational deprivation. The results highlight that banditry and not climate are the crucial driver of food insecurity (45%) and negative coping. The view that distress response is translated into resilience through policy framework is misdiagnosis that cause malnutrition in disguise. To be able to intervene, bandit control must be undermined to correct food sovereignty and using feed and food demonstrations in combination with context-specific security measures to protect livestock corridors. This study adds to the understanding of the interconnected relationships between conflict, coping, and nutrition in long-term emergencies.
References
Abdulaziz, M., & Sani, I. (2024). The political economy of banditry and the crisis of governance in Northwestern Nigeria. African Security Review, 33(1), 45–62. https://doi.org/10.1080/10246029.2023.2298761
Abdulkadir, B., & Jibril, S. (2024). Beyond assets: Applying conflict-sensitive livelihood frameworks in Northwest Nigeria. Journal of International Development, 36(2), 789–812. https://doi.org/10.1002/jid.3821
Abdullahi, A. (2023). Famine resilience versus nutritional collapse: Pastoralist adaptation paradoxes in the Sahelian crisis. Disasters, 47(S2), S145–S167. https://doi.org/10.1111/disa.12601
Abdullahi, A., & Ibrahim, M. (2024). Climate variability, land degradation and conflict dynamics in pastoral communities of Katsina State, Nigeria. Journal of Arid Environments, 218, 105067. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaridenv.2024.105067
Abdullahi, M., Hassan, A., & Bello, K. (2024). The economic annihilation of pastoralism: Livestock depletion and food insecurity in Katsina State. Centre for Arid Zone Studies, Ahmadu Bello University.
ACLED (Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project). (2023). Conflict trends in Nigeria: 2022-2023 mid-year update. Retrieved from https://acleddata.com/africa/nigeria/
ACLED Nigeria Conflict Watch. (2025). Bandit warlordism: Territorial control and violence in Northwest Nigeria (Quarterly Report Q1 2025). Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project.
Action Against Hunger Nigeria. (2024). Gender, culture, and malnutrition in Northwest Nigerian pastoralist communities. Technical Brief No. 17.
Adamu, F., & Bello, M. (2024). Gendered nutritional sacrifice: How pastoralist women’s coping strategies undermine child health in conflict. Maternal & Child Nutrition, 20(S2), e13528. https://doi.org/10.1111/mcn.13528
Adamu, H., & Yusuf, N. (2025). Indentured labor and nutritional decline among displaced pastoralist women in Katsina. Gender & Development, 33(1), 89–107. https://doi.org/10.1080/13552074.2024.2298765
Akpoghelie, E. O., Chiadika, E. O., Edo, G. I., Al-Baitai, A. Y., Zainulabdeen, K., Keremah, S. C., Ainyanbhor, I. E., Akpoghelie, P. O., Owheruo, J. O., Onyibe, P. N., Dinzei, M. M., Ekokotu, H. A., Ugbune, U., Oghroro, E. E. A., & Ekpekpo, L. D. (2024). Malnutrition and food insecurity in northern Nigeria: an insight into the United Nations World Food Program (WFP) in Nigeria. Discover Food, 4(1). https://doi.org/10.1007/s44187-024-00249-7
Amnesty International Nigeria. (2024). "We are treated like bandits": Arbitrary detention and collective punishment of pastoralists in Northwest Nigeria. Index: AFR 44/7982/2024.
Ayuba, S., & Omonona, B. T. (2024). Gendered impacts of farmer-herder conflicts on household food security in North Central Nigeria. Food Security, 16(1), 145-162. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12571-023-01415-w.
Bello, A. U., & Ahmed, M. (2023). Coping or collapsing? Livelihood strategies of Fulani pastoralists amidst banditry in Zamfara and Katsina States. Pastoralism: Research, Policy and Practice, 13(1), 15. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13570-023-00282-8
Bello, T., & Sada, I. (2025). Crisis subsistence: The transformation of pastoralist livelihoods under siege. Journal of Peasant Studies, 52(2), 345–367. https://doi.org/10.1080/03066150.2024.2019876
Bello, U., & Aliyu, A. (2024). The coping-adaptation mirage: Policy misdiagnosis of pastoralist responses to violence. World Development Perspectives, 33, 100553. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wdp.2024.100553
Béné, C., Frankenberger, T., Griffin, T., Langworthy, M., Mueller, M., & Martin, S. (2023). "Resilience as a policy narrative: Potentials and limits in the context of urban food security." Global Food Security, 36, 100689. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gfs.2023.100689
Centre for Gender Studies, Usmanu Danfodiyo University. (2023). Mental health burden and infant feeding practices in conflict-affected pastoralist communities. Research Monograph Series No. 9.
Dambo, L., & Garba, S. (2023). Fadamas and hurumis: Historical ecology of pastoralist adaptation in pre-conflict Katsina. Kano: Bayero University Press.
Devereux, S. (2023). Trapped in the coping–resilience continuum: The imperative of social protection in protracted crises. Disasters, 47(S2), S191–S211. https://doi.org/10.1111/disa.12589
Devereux, S. (2023). Trapped in the coping–resilience continuum: The imperative of social protection in protracted crises. Disasters, 47(S2), S191-S211. https://doi.org/10.1111/disa.12589
Doctors Without Borders Katsina Operational Report. (2025). Access constraints and adaptive programming in high-intensity conflict zones: January 2024–March 2025. Médecins Sans Frontières.
Eze, J. N., Omotayo, A. O., Otunola, G. A., & Aremu, A. O. (2022). Assessment of nutritional status and dietary diversity among women and children in conflict-affected communities of Borno State, Nigeria. African Journal of Food, Agriculture, Nutrition and Development, 22(3), 19961-19979. https://doi.org/10.18697/ajfand.108.21205
Faleke, I., & Rabe, M. (2024). Protection economies: The financialization of insecurity in pastoralist Northwest Nigeria. Conflict, Security & Development, 24(1), 1–23. https://doi.org/10.1080/14678802.2024.2012345
FEWS NET (Famine Early Warning Systems Network). (2024). Nigeria Food Security Outlook: February - September 2024. Retrieved from https://fews.net/west-africa/nigeria
FSIN (Food Security Information Network). (2023). Global Report on Food Crises 2023. Retrieved from https://www.fsinplatform.org/global-report-food-crises-2023
Haruna, A., & Idris, M. (2025). The political economy of livestock predation: Bandit taxation systems in Northwest Nigeria. Conflict, Security & Development, 25(1), 1–24. https://doi.org/10.1080/14678802.2025.2001234
Hassan, K., & Dipeolu, O. (2024). Maternal mental health and infant feeding practices in conflict-affected pastoralist communities: Evidence from Northwest Nigeria. Social Science & Medicine, 340, 116458. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2023.116458
Hill, R. V., Porter, C., & Snilstveit, B. (2024). Measuring resilience in conflict-affected settings: A critical review of indicators and frameworks. World Development, 174, 106451. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.worlddev.2023.106451
Husaini, M., & Umar, S. (2024). The political economy of banditry and pastoralist displacement in North-West Nigeria. Review of African Political Economy, 51(179), 1-20. https://doi.org/10.1080/03056244.2024.2314567
Hussen, A., et al. (2022). Livestock loss and micronutrient deficiency in pastoralist communities of the Horn of Africa. Journal of Nutrition, 152(4), 1021–1030.
Idris, H., & Yahaya, S. (2025). Longitudinal analysis of livelihood strategies and child wasting in conflict-affected pastoralist households. Journal of Development Studies, 61(3), 412–430. https://doi.org/10.1080/00220388.2024.2168765
International Alert. (2024). Bandit warlordism and community coping strategies in Katsina State. Peacebuilding Analysis Report.
International Crisis Group. (2023). Stemming the Violence in Nigeria’s North West. Africa Report N°322. Retrieved from https://www.crisisgroup.org/africa/west-africa/nigeria/322-stemming-violence-nigerias-north-west
International Crisis Group. (2024). The vicious cycle: Banditry and community self-defense in Northwest Nigeria. Africa Report No. 341.
Katsina State Emergency Management Agency. (2024). Conflict incident mapping and displacement trends: Annual report 2023. Government of Katsina State.
Katsina State Ministry of Health. (2025). Integrated disease surveillance and response system report: Q4 2024. Government of Katsina State.
Katsina State Primary Healthcare Development Agency. (2024). Nutrition surveillance in hard-to-reach communities: Pastoralist settlements of frontline LGAs. Technical Report.
Majekodunmi, A. O., Kwaga, J. K. P., & Welburn, S. C. (2024). Navigating the abyss: The transformation of Fulani pastoralism under climate and conflict stress in Nigeria. Nomadic Peoples, 28(1), 45-68. https://doi.org/10.3197/np.2024.280104
Maxwell, D., & Gelsdorf, K. (2024). Conflict as entitlement failure: Revisiting Sen in contemporary humanitarian crises. Food Policy, 122, 102585. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodpol.2024.102585
Maxwell, D., et al. (2022). Asset depletion and child wasting in South Sudan. Global Food Security, 33, 100629.
Maxwell, D., Gelsdorf, K., & Santschi, M. (2023). Understanding the relationship between conflict and food security: Towards a framework for analysis. Food Policy, 119, 102518. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodpol.2023.102518
Mercy Corps. (2023). Breaking Point: The impact of banditry on communities in North-West Nigeria. Retrieved from https://www.mercycorps.org/research-resources/nigeria-banditry-impact
Mijinyawa, A., Jibril, S., & Dankande, I. (2024). Bororo'en and Sarkin Fulani: The collapse of customary governance in contemporary pastoralist crises. Zaria: Institute for Governance and Development Studies.
Mustapha, L., & Danjuma, S. (2024). Climate-conflict feedback loops in agropastoral zones: Evidence from Katsina. Climate and Development, 16(3), 256–270. https://doi.org/10.1080/17565529.2023.2298761
National Livestock Transformation Plan Secretariat. (2023). Historical analysis of grazing reserve encroachment in Northwest Nigeria. Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.
Nigeria Security Tracker. (2022). Tracking insecurity in Nigeria. Council on Foreign Relations
Nigerian Conservation Foundation. (2024). Desertification frontiers in Northwest Nigeria: Remote sensing assessment 2024. Technical Paper No. 22.
Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet). (2023). Seasonal Climate Prediction (SCP) for 2023. Retrieved from https://nimet.gov.ng/seasonal-climate-prediction
Nigerian Meteorological Agency. (2024). Climate variability and extreme events in Katsina State: 1990–2024 trend analysis. NiMet Scientific Report.
Njuki, J., et al. (2023). Gendered impacts of conflict on pastoralist livelihoods in northern Kenya. Gender & Development, 31(2), 245–262.
Nwankwo, E., Sani, A., & Okoro, C. (2024). Asset liquidation pathways and nutritional decline in protracted crises. Global Food Security, 40, 100763. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gfs.2024.100763
Nwosu, C. O., Ekesiobi, C. S., & Dimnwobi, S. K. (2024). Conflict, household coping strategies, and child nutritional outcomes: Evidence from Nigeria. Journal of Development Studies, 60(2), 234-252. https://doi.org/10.1080/00220388.2023.2278912
OCHA. (2023). Humanitarian access in Syria: Annual report 2023. United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
Okafor, U., Mohammed, A., & Onyekwere, C. (2024). Hidden hunger syndemics: Micronutrient deficiencies in conflict-affected pastoralist children. Nutrition Journal, 23(1), 32. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12937-024-00932-6
Okoli, A. C., & Lenshie, N. E. (2023). Banditry, counter-banditry, and the political economy of insecurity in North-West Nigeria. African Security, 16(2), 129-151. https://doi.org/10.1080/19392206.2023.2206394
Olaniyan, A., & Umar, B. F. (2023). Data gaps and methodological challenges in assessing nutrition in conflict: The case of North-West Nigeria. Conflict and Health, 17(1), 42. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13031-023-00541-w
Olayinka, O., & Ibrahim, R. (2024). The resilience trap: How development narratives obscure pastoralist precarity. Third World Quarterly, 45(1), 156–175. https://doi.org/10.1080/01436597.2023.2287123
OpenSanitation Initiative. (2024). Water access, sanitation, and nutritional outcomes in pastoralist IDP settlements. Field Survey Report: Katsina State.
Patel, V., et al. (2022). Maternal depression and child nutrition in low-income settings. The Lancet Global Health, 10(5), e712–e722.
Rimaye, A., Gwary, D., & Yahaya, I. (2023). GIS tracking of pastoralist mobility collapse under conflict in Katsina. Applied Geography, 155, 102987. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apgeog.2023.102987
Shehu, M., & Musa, A. (2024). Libya’s legacy: Small arms proliferation and bandit recruitment in Northwest Nigeria. Small Arms Survey Journal, 31(4), 45–68.
SMART Nutrition Survey. (2024). Standardized Monitoring and Assessment of Relief and Transitions (SMART) survey: Katsina State pastoralist settlements. Conducted by UNICEF/CDC/FMOH.
Suleiman, M. (2023). Weaponized landscapes: Environmental infrastructure in the logic of pastoral conflict. Political Geography, 107, 102996. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.polgeo.2023.102996
Surkan, P. J., et al. (2023). Maternal mental health and child stunting: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Maternal & Child Nutrition, 19(1), e13456.
Ukwe, C. (2025). Nigeria and food security challenges: Intertwining of climate change and non-state armed groups and policy interventions. In Worldwide Megatrends in Food Safety and Food Security [Working Title]. IntechOpen.
Umar, A., & Mustapha, M. (2023). Nested vulnerabilities: Climate, conflict, and pastoralist livelihood collapse in Katsina. Regional Environmental Change, 23(4), 132. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10113-023-02122-2
UN OCHA Nigeria. (2024). Humanitarian access constraints in Northwest Nigeria: Quarter 4 2023. United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
UNDP (United Nations Development Programme). (2024). Assessing the Impact of Conflict on Human Development in North-West Nigeria. Retrieved from https://www.ng.undp.org/content/nigeria/en/home/library/crisis_prevention_and_recovery/assessing-impact-conflict-north-west.html
UNDP. (2024). Communities at the brink: Human development impacts of banditry in Northwest Nigeria. United Nations Development Programme Nigeria.
UNICEF. (2023). Child Malnutrition in Nigeria: A situation analysis and call to action. Retrieved from https://www.unicef.org/nigeria/reports/child-malnutrition-nigeria
Vlassenroot, K., et al. (2023). Armed groups and market disruption in eastern DRC. Journal of Peasant Studies, 50(3), 445–467.
Watts, M. (2023). The political ecology of pastoral violence. Geoforum, 146, 103878. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoforum.2023.103878
WFP. (2023). Yemen food security update: Market disruption and price volatility. World Food Programme.
World Bank. (2023). Nigeria Development Update (NDU): Seizing the Opportunity. Retrieved from https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/nigeria/publication/nigeria-development-update-ndu-june-2023.
World Bank. (2024). Nutrition in the crossfire: Addressing the crisis in Northwest Nigeria. Washington, DC: World Bank Group.
World Food Programme Katsina Market Monitoring System. (2025). Food price volatility and market functionality in conflict-affected LGAs: January 2025 report. WFP Vulnerability Analysis and Mapping Unit.
Yakubu, A., Okeke, T., & Nwosu, O. (2024). Embodied deprivation: The biological impacts of conflict adaptation in Northern Nigeria. Social Science & Medicine, 344, 116612. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2024.116612
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Abdulkarim Abdullahi
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
