Local Institutions and Peacemaking in Southwest Nigeria

Abstract

This article discusses the peacemaking architecture within the scope of sociocultural processes in Southwest Nigeria. The study was carried out in Southwest Nigeria, focusing on a limited number of cases. Qualitative data were collected and analyzed using the content analysis method. It found that local institutions had a noticeable effect on the peacemaking processes on communal conflict; but they are, to a marked level, incapacitated owing to the lack of modern organizational powers to exert authority, poor access to detailed information about crises, and a conflict of interest. It therefore concludes that local institutional strength on peacemaking has not developed to the extent of overcoming inter-communal and inter-ethnic crises. Rather, its strengths and successes lie more in dealing with intra-communal and micro-conflicts.