Community Conflict and Land Rights in Ebonyi State: The Case of Ezza-Ezillo and Ezza-Ikwo Disputes (2015-2024)

This study examines the dynamics of community conflict over land rights in Ebonyi State, focusing on the persistent Ezza-Ezillo and Ezza-Ikwo intercommunal land disputes between 2015 and 2024. Land-related conflicts have constituted one of the most persistent sources of political instability and humanitarian crisis in Ebonyi State, displacing tens of thousands of persons and straining state security resources. The study is anchored on the Resource Competition Theory, particularly the works of Homer-Dixon on environment, scarcity, and conflict, which posits that competition over scarce natural resources including arable land drives intercommunal violence. A qualitative research design was employed, drawing on analysis of government white papers, judicial commission reports, media archives, and community testimonies obtained through sixteen focused interviews with displacement victims, traditional rulers, lawyers, and government officials. Findings reveal that the Ezza-Ezillo conflict, which escalated significantly between 2015 and 2020, and the Ezza-Ikwo dispute, which intensified between 2021 and 2024, share structural roots in ambiguous colonial-era land demarcations that were inadequately resolved at independence. The study also finds that political elite exploitation of communal grievances for electoral mobilisation significantly prolonged conflict resolution efforts. It is concluded that land conflict in Ebonyi State will persist without a comprehensive land demarcation exercise and independent adjudication mechanism. The study recommends the establishment of a permanent state land disputes tribunal backed by updated cadastral mapping.

Keywords: Community conflict, land rights, Ebonyi State, Ezza, intercommunal violence