専修大学社会科学研究所

月報

No.6742019 年 8 月

doi.org/10.34360/00011156

A working paper on the local land access arrangement inrural Nigeria
Regina Hoi Yee FU
Introduction
In West Africa conflicts over the use of scare natural resources between farmers and herders
are said to be increasing in recent years. This perspective justifies direct intervention andimplies new structure for natural resource use and conflict management. Case materials
from the Nupe farmers and the Fulani herders in Nigeria, however, suggest a different
perspective. Even though limited natural resources are shared and their production systems
are gradually converging, the cooperative relationship between the two groups remains
cordial. The traditional institutions governing natural resource use and conflict resolution
are being preserved and are functioning well. This paper focuses on corralling contract,which is one of the most important traditional institutions between farmers and herders
practiced down through the ages in sub-Saharan Africa. Corralling contract refers to thecontractual agreement between farmers and herders to maintain livestock on croplands fora specified time period. Interrupted fieldwork has been conducted since 2005 on the Nupe
farmers and the Fulani herders in the Bida area of Niger State of Nigeria to investigate theimplementation of this traditional institution. Following the great reduction since mid1980s and finally the withdrawal in 1997 of fertilizer subsidies by the Nigerian government,
the corralling contract has become more important for resource-poor African farmers who
cannot afford fertilizer. Meanwhile, the decreasing availability of grazing resources due toexpansion of cultivated area outpacing population growth also makes African herders rely
more on the corralling contract as the tool to ensure access to resources.
Corralling Contract
Corralling contract is an indigenous fertilization system commonly practiced in the semiarid area of West Africa (Asanuma, 2004; Neef, 2001). When individual or group of farmerand herder enter into the contractual agreement, the herder has to corral his cattle
overnight on the farmer’s field for a specific period of time at the farmer’s request. In returnthe farmer pays the herder in cash or in kind and allows livestock to graze on the croup
residues on his fields. Land scarcity and degradation from insufficient nutrient cycling
increase the demand for manure in sub-Saharan Africa. In Nigeria, the lack of accessibility
to good quality and affordable fertilizer and the unavailability of fertilizer in time of needmake farmers rely on cattle manure. Demand for manure increased especially after thegradual reduction of the fertilizer subsidy since the mid-1980s and the liberalization of the－ 1 －fertilizer sector in 1997 (Nagy and Edun, 2002; Shimada, 1999). Farmers have to rely on
cattle manure to retrieve productivity of their lands when fallow system for long-period isdifficult. The benefits of use of manure in crop production are the improvement in soil
physical properties and the provision of N.P.K. and other mineral nutrients. The applicationof livestock manure increases soil organic matter content, which leads to improved water
infiltration and water holding capacity as well as increased cation exchange capacity.
Many researches have proven the effectiveness of corralling livestock on cropland for
improving soil fertility (Schlecht et al, 2004; Achard & Banoin, 2003). It is more effective inmaximizing nutrient cycling of soil comparing with merely applying manure transferredfrom other places. Based on TropSoils (1991), the ecological benefits from manure appliedby corralling animals can last for 10 years, which is much longer than that of transported
manure which can last for only 3 years. The corresponding crop yields are also significantly
higher. The difference is proven to be brought by cattle urine, which is difficult to betransported (Powell & Williams, 1993). Urine and manure together can effectively raise the
PH level of soil and accelerate the decomposition of organic matter and termite mounds(Brouwer and Powell, 1998). Many farmers regard the corralling contract with herders abetter mean to fertilize their fields than the application of fertilizer by themselves.
Exchange between farmers and herders is very common (Grayzel, 1990; Wilson, 1984:
Ogawa, 1998). Corralling contract is an important reciprocal arrangement that facilitates
the complimentary relationship of the two groups. Nevertheless, changes caused byeconomic, environmental and political factors are making the contract less accessible tosome farmers. Heasley and Delehanty (1996) point out that corralling contract has turned
into tools and symbols in broader struggles among communities over access to land for fieldand pasture. The research of Neef (1997) in south-west Niger finds out that richer and more
influential farmers obtain greater access to manure through corralling contract than poor
farmers. On the other hand, higher demand for manure enhances the bargaining power ofherders and enables them to get a better position in the politics of manure. Many
pastoralists use the contract as a trump in case of land conflicts (Loofboro, 1993) and as a
strategy to obtain and secure permanent land use rights from private landowners or local
leaders (Neef, 1997).
The Nupe Production System
The Nupe studied are subsistence farmers (Hirose, 2002). Because of increasing population
density, farmland is becoming scarce. Fallow period is largely shortened on uplands andlowland fields are being cultivated annually. Few Nupe farmers use inputs such as chemicalfertilizers, insecticides, pesticides, improved seeds or imported agricultural equipment. In－ 2 －2006, a bag of 50kg fertilizer (NPK:15-15-15) is estimated at NGN 3, 000 (USAID, 2007),
which is expensive relative to return and credit for purchase is unavailable. Despite of theintroduction of the Land Use Act in 1980 which took over the legal ownership of all land to
the state, communal land right still prevails in most part of Nigeria including the study
area. Due to history of Fulani conquest in the 19th century, customary land tenure systemof the Bida area is complicated. There is a three-layered structure of pattern of control overland and land related activities (Masuda, 2002). On the top level is the local king Bida Emir.
In principle all territories of the Bida Emirate are under the control of the Emir. Under the

Emir there are primary landlords which are created by the feudalistic system of the old
Nupe kingdom. At the bottle of the structure there are secondary landlords whose powers
over village lands are restricted to allocation of farmland and management of vacant land.
Under the customary land system, pastoral Fulani do not have guaranteed access to landas they are still regarded as strangers even though some of them have been cohabitatingwith Nupe in the area for over a century. Grazing lands in the study area are regarded as
open access resources. The peaceful coexistence and mutual understanding with their Nupe
hosts grant pastoral Fulani unrestricted access to any fallow lands either during the rainy
or dry season.
Pastoralist Fulani in Bida
At about 1800, Fulani mallams and Fulani cattle owners began to settle in the Nupe country(Ismaila, 2002). The first group of pastoral Fulani that settled in Bida country was theDindima’em group led by Abdul-Maliki. They migrated from an area named Machina
located somewhere north-east to the Sokoto country near Niger. During the colonial era,
Fulani from the Dindima’em group was selected by the Emir as Dikko―the chief of all
pastoral Fulani in the emirate―for the convenience of cattle tax collection. By 2005, theDikko Bida at that time estimated that there were about 1450 Fulani groups under his
domain in the whole Bida Emirate, and 350 groups were in Bida region. The main pastoral
Fulani lineages are the Dindima’em, the Boodi and the Fittoji. Pastoral Fulani in Bida
sustain their subsistence by raising cattle, sheep and chicken. Some of them begin to carryout small-scale upland farming in recent years. They form small groups compose of several
families and live in cooperation with one another. A Fulani group normally composes ofseveral baade, which refer to a family headed by a married man with an independent herdof cattle and his wife and children. The Fulani call their camp as wuro. The spatial structureof a Fulani camp in the study area is long and narrow rectangular in shape extending fromsouth to north. A Fulani camp consists of a residential section for Fulani people and an
enclosure for their cattle herd which is called hoggo.

－ 3 －Corralling contract between Nupe and pastoral Fulani
The brief record of the practice of corralling contract in the study area can be found in the
ethnographies of Nadel (1942:206) and Shikano (2002:353). Nadel described corralling
contract as “an interesting cooperation” between villagers or landlord and nomadic Fulani
herdsmen. It was an accepted arrangement among the Bida landlords to place one’s fallow
land at the disposal of the Fulani herdsmen before leasing it to a new tenant. The landlord
could then obtain a much higher price for his land. The records of Nadel and Shikano werevery brief, but they indicated that corralling contract had been an arrangement being
practiced at least for half a century in the study area. The pastoral Fulani groups studied
have diverse migration patterns and degree of closeness with Nupe villages. They arrange
corralling contract with the Nupe in different ways in response to their unique
circumstances and needs. In this study four patterns of corralling contract adopted by the
Fulani have been identified. Each pattern is illustrated below with a representative casestudy.
Corralling contact as a local political tool
As the chief of all pastoral Fulani in Bida Emirate, the group of Dikko Bida needs to act asa role model regarding the practice to sit for Nupe villages. The group of Dikko Bida began
to sit for villages north to Bida town for the rainy season since 1990. The group moved
northward as the Dindima’em lineage expanded so it moved northward to explore new
grazing resources. For rainy season, the group rotates among four Nupe villages, namely
Kologa, Bube, Akote and Emigbari. Meanwhile for the dry season, the group has been sitting
for just one village – the Eyagi village, for all the last 90 years. For Dikko Bida, corralling
contact is a local political tool to symbolize the harmonious social relationship between
pastoral Fulani and Nupe farmers, as well as to maintain the linkage with the Emir. Eyagi
village is the birthplace of the mother of the late Bida Emir and the village head of Eyagi
has always been the Village Area head, Etsu Yenkpa, who is responsible for disputesettlement at community level. Sitting for Eyagi can be regarded as an annual virtual toacknowledge the allegiance of pastoral Fulani to the Bida Emirate. Corralling contract withvillages does not bring economic benefits to Dikko Bida’s group, but it has an important
local political meaning for the maintenance of cordial social relationship between Nupe andpastoral Fulani at a whole.
Corralling contract as an economic tool
Informants from the more popular groups which receive multiple invitations describe thecorralling contract as a kind of “exchange”. They regard it as a kind of service provided for－ 4 －farmers to achieve better yield, and in return they can take some advantages from it. The
popular groups receive higher payments and more gifts from farmers for the contract.
However, they are not absolute utilitarian in their consideration for village selection. Thelong term harmonious relationship with various villages is a more important consideration
for them. The groups with higher popularity usually have higher social status, such as
belonging to the ruling house or led by respectful Islamic mallam. The group of Aliyu

Abdullahi is one of the most popular groups in the area. It is the second largest group in thearea in terms of population and it sits for various villages south to Bida town in the rainyseason. In the dry season, the group migrates to the basin of Gbako River and rotates amonga few villages. The informant of the group points out that, “It is good to maintainrelationship with various villages because it gives you more freedom and bargaining power.”
When deciding which village to select, informant says, “You cannot follow money, you need

to follow cattle.” Financial benefit is just one of their considerations, what really matter tothem are the welfare of their cattle and the good relationship with villages which makegrazing on farmers’ land an easier task. To avoid conflict among villages, the group needs torotate. To run the corralling contract is similar to running a “business” to those populargroups. They care about financial benefit, but they also need to maintain “customer relations”
with various “clients” and to prevent them from “fighting among themselves”.
Passive corralling contract
Some Fulani groups are not so eager to engage in corralling contract with villages. They
value freedom of mobility higher than the close relationship with certain Nupe communities.

Adamu Iya belongs to the Boodie lineage group which began to settle in the Bida area
migrating from the Sokoto region in the 1930s. Unlike the Dindima’em group, most of the

Boodie groups studied do not formally engage in corralling contract with Nupe villages. They
usually settle on a particular village continuously for several years during the same season.
For example, by 2005, Adamu Iya has been setting up his camp in Fakunba village during
the rainy season for five consecutive years, and in Gaba village for the dry season for ten
consecutive years. Adamu Iya does not actively engage in corralling contract with villages
although a few villages always show welcome to host his group. He prefers to be flexible sothat he can explore new environment for his cattle anytime he wants. The precondition for
him to stay in a village is that the villagers have shown welcome and have ever forgiven
him for minor destruction caused by farm encroachment.
Fixed corralling contract
There are a few groups studied that do not carry out seasonal migration. They settle bothin the rainy and dry seasons in a particular village for years. Their life-style can be regarded－ 5 －as semi-settled, but they do not own permanent shelters and need to move their cattle
enclosure frequently within the village following the request of their hosts. The villages they
stay are usually larger in scale, with large area of vacant land and possess water resource
even during the dry season. Groups prefer not to migrate but just sit for a particular village
because it is “too much suffering” to move among villages. The group of Aliyu moved into
the Bida area from the Sokoto region for more than 45 years ago. Aliyu has never moved outof Gbanchitako village for over a decade. The stable relationship with the village enables
him to get a relatively large plot to do his own farming. Aliyu moves his cattle enclosure
following the wishes of farmers in the rainy season. In the dry season, he can let his cattle
to stay on his two farms for two months respectively. Aliyu is not interested in getting
financial benefits by corralling contract. Stability is more valued and by sitting for a village
all year round for long term, he is able to sustain a semi-settled life.
Utilization of pastoral Fulani camp site
Cattle manures are accumulated inside the hoggo during the season. Fulani do not use cattle
manure as fuel or construction material. In the next rainy season after the group have
moved away, Nupe farmers spread the faeces all over the previous camp site and transfer
part of the manure to their other farms as well. The arrangement for corralling contract ofNupe farmers can be categorized into two: hosting by collective effort of a whole village andhosting by single household of a village. When arrangement is made by collective effort of awhole village, the land for past Fulani camp site is divided into many small plots anddistributed to village members according to village norms and rules. Dividing the field into
many long and narrow small plots does not comply with the principle of economics of scale,but for Nupe farmers the notion of fairness in community is highly important. That is thereason why larger group is more desirable by Nupe farmers. By hosting a bigger Fulanigroup, they can ensure members of every household of the village can get a share of the
manured land.
Conclusion
The corralling contract has enhanced the mutual dependence of Nupe farmers and Fulani
herders in central Nigeria. It is especially essential to Fulani who, under the customaryland system, has no guaranteed access to land. With the failure of the government inproviding grazing reserve, the corralling contract has remained as their most important
asset that assists them to access to resources. It is also the most important antifriction forthe social relations between the two groups. Most of the interviewed farmers answered thatthey would forgive pastoral Fulani for minor crop encroachment for the sake of the cattle
manure. Village heads are expected to assist their Fulani guests when they have disputes－ 6 －with other villages. In the study area, most of the disputes caused by cattle encroachment
into farms can be settled by village heads, rarely do cases reach to Dikko or the Emir.
Despite the history of Fulani conquer in the early nineteenth century, Nupe farmers
generally are not antagonistic toward pastoral Fulani. Although they do not form marital
relations, the Nupe and the Fulani have a wide range of social interaction. The camps ofFulani are generally close to homestead of villagers. Fulani men often gather in village andpray in mosque with their Nupe fellows. The corralling contract has a positive impact on
the social relation of the two groups. They see each other as partner: the Nupe need theFulani for manure while the Fulani need the Nupe for land and fodder. The corralling
contract is not a casual arrangement, but a dynamic and functioning traditional institutionthat facilitates the collaboration of the two groups. It is an important example of local
adaptation and innovation that allows balance to be maintained when limited resources arebeing shared. Statutory efforts to draw territorial distinctions between agriculture andlivestock production have created social rifts in many regions in Africa. Technologicalsolutions, such as chemical fertilizers, have not halted the decline in agricultural
productivity. Corralling contract should be advanced as a part of the complex set of social
and biophysical conditions in agropastoral regions. Instead of working in vain to simplify
the system with statutory and technological solutions which separate agriculture fromlivestock production, efforts should be focused on removing constraints of corralling contract
implementation on both sides and facilitating this institution to enhance the association
between agricultural and livestock production.
Acknowledgement
The researcher is grateful to the support of JSPS KAKENHI Grant Number 16K20982. This
paper is also funded by a Senshu University research grant in 2019 and is based on part of
the results of a project entitled “The economic anthropology approach on African peasanteconomy”.
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