Starting from those implemented by the British colonial administration, tsetse control programs have reduced the threat of diseases such as trypanosomiasis.
However, in the south, they would encounter sedentary communities that have not historically had any experience with peacefully negotiating and co-existing with nomadic herders.
[8][9] It followed a trend in the increase of farmer–herder conflicts throughout much of the western Sahel, due to an expansion of agriculturist population and cultivated land at the expense of pasturelands; deteriorating environmental conditions, desertification and soil degradation;[10] population growth;[3] breakdown in traditional conflict resolution mechanisms of land and water disputes; and proliferation of small arms and crime in rural areas.
[12] There are various pastoralist tribes in northern Nigeria that include not only Fulani people, but also Kanuri, Kanembu, Arab, and other groups.
[17] Over time the periodic clashes between herders and farmers in Northern and North-Central Nigeria have precipitated a general climate of insecurity.
This widespread insecurity both allows for and is perpetuated by acts of broader criminality, in which gangs of bandits target locations in the area for raids, mass kidnappings, and looting.
The beginning of the 21st century witnessed an expansion of the agriculturist population and its cultivated land at the expense of pasturelands in the Middle Belt.
[19] Deteriorating environmental conditions, desertification and soil degradation[10][20][21] have led Fulani herdsmen from Northern Nigeria to change their transhumance routes.
Access to pastureland and watering points in the Middle Belt became essential for herdsmen travelling from the North of the country.
[23] Fighting Boko Haram in the North-East and facing rising levels of violence in different regions of the country, the government has nonetheless tried to implement a few measures.
Due to the widely perceived inefficacy of the Nigerian government, armed vigilante groups have sprung up in many farmer communities.
Local politicians and religious leaders have also exacerbated conflicts by recruiting members and frequently exaggerating claims.
Despite the high number of attacks, Nigerian and foreign journalists rarely have access to first-hand testimonies and tend to report inaccurate figures.