Conflicts In Pastoral Communities and Their Economic Implications: A Case of Marsabit Central District of Northern Kenya

ABSTRACF Over the years, conflict has remained the major cause of under-development in Northern Kenya. The conventional causes i.e. scarcity of pasture, water, small arms proliferation e.t.c. appear to have no eminent solution due to the deteriorating climatic change and global warming with anarchy setting in the neighboring countries like Somalia and Ethiopia. The research focus to find out the socio political factors that influence inter-Tribal conflict and the Economic Implication among the pastoral communities. The research was conducted comparatively through a survey of Gadamoji and centra division in Marsabit Central district. A sample size of 150 respondents was drawn from the two divisions, Primary data was collected using questionnaires, observation, interviews and from existing secondary data. The sampling technique used was multi stage random cluster sampling for the general public and purposti e sampling for key public officers selected for the interviei~s. Using PRA tools Eke pair-wise ~anking, Venn diagram and conflict response index, the information gathered v~as analyzed and computed us~ng the Statistical Package for Social science (SPSS). Most conflicts occurred over sharing of scarce resources such as pasture and water as each community strive to access and control these resources. Due to district proximity to Ethiopia and Somalia border, It is easy for these con’n’unities t” acquire firearms, ~‘.‘hich are being smuggled from these countries hence heightening the severity ofthe conflict. Politics also plays a role as some political leaders instigate conflicts between the local communities through careless utterances and unequal distribution of resources. This is made worse by the fact that the culture ofthese communities allows raiding activities and reward raiders. The study therefore recommends that the society, government, churches, NGOs and other stakeholders should collaborate in order to find a lasting solution to these inter-tribal conflicts which have made it difficult for development actors to make interventions in this region.

 TABLE OF CONTENTS

CONTENTS PAGES

DECLARATION

APPROVAL

APPROVAL SI~ET

DEDICATION iv

ACKNOWLEDGEIVffiNTS v

TABLE OF CONTENTS vi

LIST OF TABLES viii

LIST OF FIGURES ix

ABBREVIATIONS x

ABSTRACT xi

CHAPTER ONE 1

LO INTRODUCTION I

1.1 Background 1

1.2 Problem Statement 4

1.3 Objectives of the Study 5

1.4 Hypothesis 5

1,5 Scope 5

1.6 Justification for the Study 6

CHAPTER TWO

2~0 LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 Introduction 7

2.2 Theoretical Review 7

2.3 The Factors in Conflict Situations 16

2.4 Factors That Influence Conflicts 19

2.5 Social Capital and Armed Violence 22

2.6 The political Economy ofViolence 24

2.7 Outcomes of Conflict 25

2.8 Theoretical Framework 30

2.9 Hypotheses and Operationalization ofVariables 33

CHAPTER THREE 34

3,0 RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY 34

3.1 Introduction 34

3.2 Research Design 34

3.3 The Target Population 34

3.4 The Sample and Sampling Procedure 35

3.5 Methods of Data Collection 35

3.6 Data Collection instruments. 35

3.7 Methods of Data Analysis 36

3.8 Ethical Considerations 36

3.9 The Limitations ofthe Study 36

CHAPTER FOUR 38

4~O DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS 38

4.1 Introduction 38

4.2 Data Presentation 38

4.2.1 The Characteristics ofthe Respondents 38

4.3 The Socio-Political Factors 40

4.3.1 Traditional Practices 41

4.3.2 Problems ofresource sharin~ 45

4.3.3 Availability of Firearms 47

4.3.4 Role of politics 48

4.3.5 The relationship between inter-tribal conflicts and availability of resources 55

4.3.6 Role of politics in inter-tribal conflicts 57

4.3,7 The relationship between inter-tribal conflict and availability of firearms. 58

CHAPTER FIVE 61

5~O SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 61

5.1 Summaiy 61

5.2 Conclusion 61

5.3 Recommendations 63

5.4 Further Research 65

REFERENCES 66

APPENDICES 71