Severe desertification in Northern Cameroon has forced farmers, fishers, and herders to move toward food, water, and fertile land. According to the United Nations, the long-term lack of rain and overuse has made Lake Chad no longer sufficient to provide enough water to the region. The lake has lost ninety percent of its surface area in the last fifty years, and desertification will worsen in the future. People affected by desertification in the region have moved to other communities or attempted to adapt to the situation. However, since August 2021, such efforts have led to violent inter-ethnic conflict. For instance, The Musgum tried to conserve water by digging deep basins to retain it. This became a problem because the deep reservoirs trapped cattle belonging to the Choa Arab herders, and many animals died. This led to deadly violence between Choa Arab herders and The Musgum.
Inter-ethnic conflict like this has been rapidly escalating in the region. The fighting and competition over resources have caused irreversible destruction of communities. As of December 20, 2021, the violence has led to the destruction of 112 villages and the deaths of 44 people. During some of the clashes, men have purposefully blown up valuable resources like livestock markets, making it even harder than it already was for villagers to find food. More than 100,000 people have fled their homes because of the violence, and 85,000 people, primarily women, and children, have fled to neighboring Chad. According to UNHCR, those coming from Northern Cameroon need basic supplies such as shelter and blankets, as most are sleeping out in the open under trees. People who remain in their homes in Cameroon are increasingly vulnerable to violent attacks. Issa Mahmat, an Arab Choa villager, told UNHCR that “currently, everyone is afraid. At night when you are in bed, there is no sleep. ” At the same time, everyone is still struggling to find and conserve food and water.
According to UNHCR, the recent violence in Northern Cameroon is “the worst inter-communal fighting ever seen” in the region. There is no end in sight to the rapidly escalating violence. Since the problem of the lack of resources also remains unresolved, it is unclear when and if ever refugees and IDPs will be able to return home. UNHCR also reports that only fifty-two percent of its financial requirements for Cameroon were met in 2021. The severity of these problems provides a bleak window into the future of climate-related migration. As climate change gets more severe, more people worldwide will be forced to move to new areas in search of resources. Events like those in Northern Cameroon show how this movement can provoke new conflict and exacerbate existing conflict between different ethnic, political, or socioeconomic groups. Humanitarian actors should pay critical attention to these events now so when developing anticipatory actions for future climate migration; they account for potential violent conflict.
Humanitarian Content Writer, Act for Displaced
I earned a BA in Humanitarian Studies from Fordham University, USA, and earned a graduate certificate in education policy from the University of Massachusetts. Now I’m pursuing an MSc in Educational Studies at the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven.
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