Samuel Marfo
University for Development Studies
Title: Conflict and food insecurity: An introspection of bumkpurugu-yooyun district in northern Gana
Biography
Biography: Samuel Marfo
Abstract
Food insecurity has been a major problem confronting developing nations including Ghana as it results in considerable health, social and psychological consequences, which invariably undermines human security. This study sought to explore how intra-ethnic conflicts affect household food sufficiency in the Bumkpurugu-Yunyoo District in the Northern Region of Ghana, which in contemporary times has witnessed occasional destructive conflicts notably between the Konkombas and the Bimobas. Given the objective of the study, both purposive and random sampling techniques were used in selecting 107 respondents from four conflict prone communities namely Bimbagu, Jimbale, Kpamale and Nyankpanduri. Data gathered through semi-structured interview between June, 2015 and December, 2015 in an exploratory study revealed that food insecurity in the study locality has been partly facilitated by the burning of farms and food stock, food thefts, and insecurity and induced migration which result in low economic activities. This paper therefore advocates for continuous dialogue, swift intervention into conflict situations by the justice system, as well as periodic education and training of traditional and opinion leaders in conflict detection and management as a way of managing disagreements among the various (ethnic) groups in the study locality without the recourse to violence.