1. Response to “The panel requested to see more detail on the activities/ workplan/ role of ethnographers and RAs within the project”.
Given the deep mistrust toward outsiders, prolonged research is necessary to build trust and gather reliable, nuanced insights. Ethnographers will thus, be embedded within different types of Fulani communities in Ghana for 90 days each, ensuring a detailed understanding of daily life, mobility, and knowledge transmission.
Before beginning structured research, all four ethnographers will focus on integration. They will participate in daily activities such as herding, household chores, and market visits while engaging in casual conversations to build relationships with elders, youth, and women’s groups. This phase is important as observing without interference will help them understand social hierarchies, conflict dynamics, and informal education processes. This period is essential, as Fulani communities are closed and protective, and trust must be earned gradually before meaningful research can take place.
Ethnographer 1 & 2: Highly Mobile Fulani (Days 16–90)These ethnographers will focus on Fulani who migrate seasonally with their cattle, requiring them to constantly move between grazing areas, adapting to the herders' routines.
• Days 16–40: Ethnographers will travel alongside herders, documenting herding techniques, migration routes, and decision-making processes related to livestock movement. They will observe how Fulani decide where to settle temporarily, how they interact with host communities, and the role of environmental changes in their movements.
• Days 41–70: Due to the unpredictability of movement, storytelling and interviews will be conducted opportunistically during resting periods and social gatherings. Researchers will focus on how knowledge of herding, land use, and conflict resolution is passed between generations, including the role of elders in decision making.
• Days 71–90: The final phase will focus on validating findings by revisiting different herding groups to ensure accuracy and consistency in the data collected. As part of the exit strategy, ethnographers will hold informal debriefing sessions with key community members, summarizing insights, addressing concerns, and ensuring transparency to maintain trust for future engagement.
1 Ethnographer 3 & 4: Semi-Nomadic & Settled Fulani (Days 16–90) Unlike highly mobile groups, these Fulani combine seasonal movement with periods of settlement, creating a balance between pastoralism and local economic activities. Since this category is diverse, one ethnographer will focus on broader community structures, while the other will examine gender roles and women’s knowledge transmission.• Days 16–35: Ethnographers will document how semi-nomadic Fulani organize their economic activities, engage with schools, and participate in trade while maintaining cultural traditions. They will observe how these communities interact with settled populations and how youth navigate both Fulani and mainstream Ghanaian identities.
• Days 36–70: The gender-focused ethnographer will examine the role of women in informal education, and intergenerational knowledge sharing, with particular attention to how marriage, childbirth, and religious practices influence knowledge transfer. Meanwhile, the other ethnographer will assess how younger Fulani integrate or resist external influences and whether formal education alters their cultural identity. The timing of this phase will be strategically planned to coincide with major Fulani gatherings, festivals, naming ceremonies, and key market days, ensuring that researchers can observe knowledge exchange in culturally significant settings where community interactions are heightened.
• Days 71–90: The final phase will involve focus group discussions with different age groups to assess how traditions evolve. Unlike highly mobile groups, settled Fulani are more open to discussions in structured settings, making this phase essential for gathering collective perspectives. The ethnographers will present their findings in informal community meetings, ensuring transparency and reciprocity.