The Roles of the Church in Addressing the Conflicts Generated by Massive Influx of Fulani People into South-Western Nigeria

Nigeria is home to over 380 ethnic groups, with 500 languages, producing great cultural diversity and plurality. The largest groups include Hausa consisting 23%, Fulani constituting 6% of the population, Yoruba 21% Igbo 19%. Every Nigerian legitimated constitutionally live engage in lawful business relationship anywhere country; however, recent expansionist tendencies virtually every city Southern-Nigeria, has become inimical territorial policies, security, religious, social economic development. sporadic migration generated violent clashes, causing death, property loss, disregard for civility, desecration religious institutions values. Farmlands have been forcefully taken over; schools turned grazing fields residences. Ethnic cleavages inter-ethnic fears tensions currently pervade Nigeria. Such fear politicization bedeviled Kenya, Rwanda Burundi mention but a few. This paper premised on Lewis Coser’s Social Conflict theory, which defined as struggle values or claims status, power, scarce resources, aims conflicting parties are not just gain desired values, also neutralize, injure eliminate their rivals. Theological hermeneutics, historical qualitative approaches were employed data collection. Church’s role promoting peaceful co-existence critically imperative.