Yoruba Folktales as a Mechanism for Conflict Resolution and its Implications for Alternative Dispute Resolution in Ikorodu, Lagos State

Conflict is an inevitable feature of human interaction, but the methods employed to manage it are culturally conditioned. Among the Yoruba, folktales constitute an important form of indigenous knowledge through which values, norms, expectations and acceptable patterns of social behaviour are transmitted across generations. This paper examines Yoruba folktales as mechanisms for conflict prevention, management, reconciliation and peace building, with particular attention to their implications for Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) in Ikorodu, Lagos State. The study adopts a qualitative documentary approach, drawing on scholarly literature on Yoruba oral tradition, indigenous conflict management, traditional institutions and ADR, together with documentary materials concerning Ikorodu's historical and traditional institutions. The analysis demonstrates that Yoruba folktales perform preventive, corrective, communicative and reconciliatory functions. Through narratives involving justice, greed, betrayal, cooperation, deception, restitution, patience and communal responsibility, folktales teach disputants and community members how destructive behaviour produces social consequences and why reconciliation is necessary for restoring communal equilibrium. The study argues that the narrative logic of Yoruba folktales can complement contemporary mediation and community-based ADR in Ikorodu. Their integration, however, should respect constitutional rights, gender equality, voluntariness and the distinction between cultural education and legally enforceable adjudication. The paper concludes that culturally informed ADR can strengthen access to justice, social legitimacy, reconciliation and sustainable peace in Ikorodu.