UMUZOMGBO, ABIA — The Chairman of the Abia State Council of Traditional Rulers, Eze Linus Nto Mbah, has said tensions between farmers and herders declined across the state in 2026, with fewer reports of clashes and destruction of farmlands recorded in communities.
Eze Mbah made the disclosure on Saturday during the 2026 New Yam Festival celebration in his community, Ata Igbo Ukwu, Umuzomgbo Autonomous Community, in Arochukwu Local Government Area of Abia State.
The traditional ruler attributed the improvement to sustained peace-building efforts involving the Abia State Government, traditional rulers, leaders of Northern communities living in the state and indigenous cattle owners.
According to him, the engagement among the different groups has helped reduce incidents involving farmers and herders and created a more stable environment for agricultural activities in several communities.
Eze Mbah said the impact of the improved security situation could also be seen in agricultural production, noting that several communities recorded better yam and other crop harvests in 2026 compared with previous years.
He cited Ata Igbo Ukwu Umuzomgbo among the communities where farmers were able to achieve improved harvests, linking the development partly to the reduction in insecurity and conflicts affecting agricultural activities.
The traditional ruler consequently encouraged farmers across Abia State to return to their farms without fear, saying the prevailing peace efforts should give agricultural communities greater confidence to resume and expand farming activities.
He, however, appealed to cattle owners to ensure that their animals do not stray into cultivated farmlands or private properties, warning that such actions could undermine the progress made in reducing farmer-herder tensions.
Eze Mbah said traditional rulers would continue supporting the peace initiatives of Governor Alex Otti, particularly efforts aimed at improving security across communities, farmlands and forest areas.
He maintained that protecting agricultural land from conflict was important not only for individual farmers but also for food production and the wider economy of the state.
The traditional ruler also called on the Federal Government to strengthen its monitoring of agricultural support programmes so that funding and farming inputs intended for genuine farmers reach the people for whom they were designed.
He expressed concern that agricultural interventions could fail to achieve their intended purpose if resources meant for farmers were diverted to politicians or people who do not operate farms.
Eze Mbah argued that access to funding and secure farmland could encourage more young Nigerians to consider agriculture as a viable commercial activity.
According to him, many young people could be attracted to farming if they were provided with adequate financial support and assured that they could work on their farms without fear of attacks or destruction.
“More Nigerian youths would be interested in farming if they are supported with adequate funding and they are ready to go into commercial agriculture if the farms are made safe,” he said.
The monarch’s comments placed security and agricultural development at the centre of the state’s efforts to improve relations between farming communities and cattle owners.
The reduction in reported clashes, according to Eze Mbah, has created conditions under which farmers can concentrate more fully on production rather than worrying about possible attacks or damage to their crops.
He also stressed the responsibility of cattle owners to prevent their herds from entering farms and private property, a recurring source of tension between agricultural communities and herders.
For the traditional institution, maintaining the progress recorded in 2026 will require continued cooperation among government authorities, community leaders, farmers and cattle owners.
Eze Mbah’s appeal also highlighted the relationship between security and food production, as farmers are less likely to expand cultivation where they fear losing crops or being exposed to violence.
The improved harvests reported in communities such as Ata Igbo Ukwu therefore provide, in his assessment, an indication of what can be achieved when agricultural communities operate in a more peaceful environment.
He called for the continuation of dialogue and peace-building efforts involving traditional rulers and other stakeholders, while urging cattle owners to respect the boundaries of farms and private properties.
The Abia State Council of Traditional Rulers, under his leadership, he said, would continue to support measures designed to protect communities and create conditions conducive to farming.
Eze Mbah also emphasised that agricultural support should be directed toward people actively engaged in farming, rather than being distributed through channels that could prevent genuine farmers from benefiting.
He linked effective agricultural funding with youth participation, saying financial assistance combined with safe farming environments could make commercial agriculture more attractive to a new generation.
His position was delivered during the New Yam Festival, an occasion closely associated with agricultural production and harvest celebrations in communities across southeastern Nigeria.
The celebration in Ata Igbo Ukwu therefore provided a platform for the traditional ruler to highlight the relationship between peace, farming and improved harvests while urging stakeholders to protect the gains recorded during the year.
Eze Mbah maintained that continued peace across Abia’s farming communities would be essential to sustaining agricultural production and encouraging more people, particularly young Nigerians, to participate in commercial farming.
Farmers-Herdsmen Clashes Decline in Abia in 2026, Traditional Rulers Say
