Food Security and the Right to Food in Conflict-Affected Communities of Benue State

This research examines food security challenges in conflict-affected communities of Benue State, North Central Nigeria, and analyzes them as violations of the right to food under Article 11 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the Voluntary Guidelines on the Right to Food adopted by the FAO in 2004. The protracted farmer-herder conflict in Benue State, intensifying since 2017, has resulted in mass displacement, destruction of farmlands, and disruption of agricultural livelihoods, leaving many communities in a state of acute food insecurity. A mixed-methods research design is employed, combining household food security surveys across five local government areas in Benue's agrarian belt with qualitative interviews with displaced farmers, local government officials, NEMA representatives, and international humanitarian organizations. Secondary data draw on the Cadre Harmonise food security classifications and FAO Nigeria crop assessment reports. Findings reveal that approximately 35 percent of surveyed households experience severe food insecurity, with women-headed households and children under five years old most severely affected. The study argues that the government's failure to provide adequate protection for farming communities and timely humanitarian assistance constitutes a violation of the right to food. Recommendations include strengthened security provision for farmers, agricultural rehabilitation grants for conflict-affected households, and social protection programs targeting the most vulnerable. Keywords: right to food, food security, Benue State, farmer-herder conflict, humanitarian law.