Ethno-Religious Conflicts, Residential Patterns and the Role of Women in Conflict Resolution: The Plateau and Bauchi States Experience

Abstract

The central thesis of this study is ethno-religious conflicts, residential patterns and the role of women in conflict resolution. The study was limited to Jos North, Jos South, Toro and Tafawa Balewa Local Government Areas of Plateau and Bauchi States, Nigeria. Survey design was adopted for this study. Using the multi stage and purposive sampling techniques, 382 respondents emerged as the study sample. Intractable conflict theory was employed to further a better comprehension of the problem. The study adopted both quantitative and qualitative data. Regression and ANOVA statistical techniques were employed to test the hypotheses using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS Version 26). The study among others revealed that: a major cause of the ethno-religious conflicts in the study areas that influenced residential segregations, is religion intolerance. The study also revealed the role of women in peace building and conflict resolution in the mixed residential areas of the study. The study recommends resourceful and revitalizing ways through which the protracted ethno-religious conflicts in Plateau and Bauchi States in particular and Nigeria in general, can be stemmed in order to allow for the emergence of peaceful mixed residential patterns.