RELEVANCE OF INFORMATION SHARING FOR CONFLICTS MANAGEMENT AMONG TRADITIONAL RULERS IN BORNO, DIKWA AND BAMA EMIRATE COUNCILS, BORNO STATE, NIGERIA.

Abstract

This study investigated the relevance of information sharing in conflict management among traditional rulers in the Borno, Dikwa, and Bama Emirate Councils of Borno State, Nigeria. Conflict remains a pervasive issue in these communities, exacerbated by insurgency, ethnic tensions, land disputes, and social instability. Traditional rulers, as custodians of indigenous knowledge and community leaders, play a critical role in resolving such conflicts. However, the effectiveness of their efforts is often hindered by poor information-sharing mechanisms. The study adopts a quantitative research methodology with a descriptive survey design, targeting the population of 4724 members of traditional rulers in the Borno, Dikwa and Bama Emirate Councils of Borno State, Nigeria, and 354 was used as sample size based on Krejcie and Morgan (1970) sampling table. Data were collected through questionnaire and analyzed using mean score and standard deviation (SD). Findings revealed that information sharing significantly contributes to conflict resolution, peaceful coexistence, unity, and community development. The most highly shared type of information relates to fostering peaceful coexistence, followed by resolving conflicts and settling marriages. The study concludes that enhanced and structured information sharing among traditional rulers can substantially improve conflict management efforts. It recommends other means of sharing information such as; effective information sharing help resolves conflict, settle marriages, improves economy, it brings about development etc.