Community Engagement with Igede indigenous group in Akufo Ido Local Govt

The Animal Protection Organization of Nigeria embarked on a campaign in January 2024, to identify communities impoverished by factors such as climate change, biodiversity loss, and poverty amongst others. The purpose of this campaign is to create an appeal to support local communities where food insecurity looms.

We targeted the Igede community based on two major factors:

1. They are traditional farmers
2. They are a minority group scattered across the country

Our campaign which we called Plants-4-Hunger (taken after AWFW) aims to support communities in Nigeria living in abject poverty. Particular communities where parents are struggling to cater for their children. This campaign will help to raise funds to support both women and men farmers to boost their productivity.

In addition, the fund will also support feeding programs for school children in the community where there is no guarantee of a square meal daily.

ABOUT THE IGEDES’

The Igede trace their origin to Sabon Gida Ora in present-day Edo state. They are said to be the descendants of Agba, a high chief in Sabon Gida Ora. A skirmish between the Igede and the natives of Ora led to their migration from that region to present-day Benue state through Nsukka in Enugu state. This historical event in Igede history is commonly recounted in song and drama, for instance the record and drama piece “Ego ny’Igede”.
The Igede people are the third largest ethnic group in present-day Benue State of Nigeria. They are native to the Oju and Obi local government areas of Nigeria, where 2006 population figures stand at an estimated 267,198 people. However, a large number of Igede people are dispersed across the state and the Nation. For instance, the Igede language is also spoken in Nigeria’s Cross River State, and a large number of Igede communities exist in Osun State and Ogun State. The Igede language is a member of the Benue-Congo subgroup of the Niger-Congo language family. Igede.org is the unofficial online community of Igede people.

Inset: Pictures of APON staffs during engagement with the Igedes in Ido Local Government Area of Oyo state, Ibadan Nigeria.