No fewer than 50 communities across five local government areas (LGAs) in Benue State have been displaced by armed herdsmen, according to a report released by the Benue State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA).
The report, titled ‘Displaced Communities in Benue State Where Fulanis Have Settled with Their Cows’, highlights a wave of renewed attacks in Ukum, Logo, Otukpo, and Gwer East LGAs, with widespread displacement recorded across 25 council wards. Gwer West LGA is identified as the worst affected, with all 15 of its council wards impacted at various times.
The affected wards in Gwer West include Sengev, Gbaange/Tongov, Saav, Mbapupuu/Tswarev, Mbabuande Kyaav, Mbapa, Tsambe/Mbesev, Sengev/Yengev, Merkyegh, Nyamshi, Tijime, Tyough Ater, and Njaha.
Other LGAs severely hit are Guma, where communities in Mbadwem, Nyiev, Mbaba, Uvir, and Mbayer/Yandev wards have been overrun. Gwer East’s Mbalom ward, Makurdi’s Mbalagh and Bar wards, and Kwande’s Moon and Anwase wards were also listed among the areas suffering sustained attacks.
SEMA’s Information Officer, Terna Ager, confirmed the extent of the devastation, saying, “There are many more, but these are the ones I can confirm for now.”
The report paints a dire humanitarian situation, with thousands forced to flee their ancestral homes. Displaced residents are now living in makeshift shelters or in at least 13 official IDP camps, while others have sought refuge with relatives in safer areas.
Reacting to the findings, retired Comptroller of Prisons and President of Mdzou U Tiv Worldwide, Iorbee Ihagh, lamented the destruction in the Moon ward of Kwande LGA, his hometown.
“Our community has been abandoned for years due to repeated attacks. Public facilities like markets, healthcare centres, and schools have all been destroyed,” Ihagh said, renewing calls for urgent federal government intervention.
“The Federal Government must declare a state of emergency in Benue. The situation is out of control,” he stressed.
SEMA’s report adds to the growing concerns over persistent violence in Benue State, where many displaced residents have spent over eight years in camps with little hope of returning to their homes.
