I am a social anthropologist with special interest in the anthropology of Africa. I received my Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology with Political Science from the University of Ghana, Legon in 2007. In 2011, I won the prestigious Commonwealth-Shared Scholarship to study at the Centre of African Studies, University of Edinburgh where I graduated with a Master of Science degree in Africa and International Development. I worked briefly as Education Coordinator and Project Manager for an Austrian NGO based in Ghana, BRAVEAURORA. In 2015, I was awarded the Lisa Maskell Doctoral Fellowship by the Graduate School of Arts and Social Sciences, Stellenbosch University (South Africa). I officially enrolled as Lisa Maskell Doctoral Fellow at the Department of Sociology and Social Anthropology, (Stellenbosch University), graduating with a PhD in Social Anthropology in 2019. While studying for my doctoral degree, I won the Monica Wilson Prize in anthropology, a prestigious award conferred by Anthropology Southern Africa. In 2020, I joined the Department of Sociology and Anthropology, University of Cape Coast, Ghana. I currently serve as Lecturer and Graduate Seminar Coordinator in the Department. In August 2023, I was elected as the Evans-Pritchard Lecturer for 2023-24 by the University of Oxford. I hold this position until May 2024. My teaching and research interests include ethnography, anthropology of religion (witchcraft, magic, rituals), medical anthropology, anthropology of aging, and the anthropology of development and human rights. I have conducted fieldwork in northern Ghana. I have published in internationally reputed journals including the Nordic Journal of African Studies, Social Dynamics, and Anthropology Southern Africa.

My pedagogy is informed by my personal experiences of living and learning elsewhere. Although I have grown up and lived the most part of my life in Ghana, I received my postgraduate education in the UK (Edinburgh) and South Africa (Stellenbosch) where I experienced issues about racial diversity and, in the case of the latter, complex racial relations. These personal experiences gained in the course of my academic engagements and exchanges have raised awareness in me about issues of diversity and racial/ethnic relations. My education in the South African context, in particular, has been as much a product of thick forms of social experience in the learning environment and at other social events. My personal experiences have taught me how diversity and multicultural consciousness can influence efforts at building or creating an inclusive learning environment. Mindful of this, I seek to adopt an inclusive pedagogy in delivering my lectures. As a learner-centred approach, inclusive pedagogy ensures that learners’ diverse backgrounds and abilities are taken into account in the design and implementation of course outlines and other instructional materials. While this approach directs students toward attaining academic freedom and self-fulfillment, it also promotes social justice and academic success. My commitment to respect diversity and promote inclusive strategies in the classroom is partly motivated by my professional training in social anthropology where sensitivity to social and cultural diversity is essential and encouraged.
I am passionate about teaching in ways that continually draw students into active modes of critical thinking that draws them towards cutting-edge research. Specifically, I am excited about developing pedagogies that build on students’ experiences and seek out inter-disciplinary reading, thinking and analysis. In my engagement with students, I seek to foster critical thinking and strong analytical skills oriented towards developing a curious mind sensitive to the academy and the world outside of it. I aim to create a challenging and exciting learning environment where students come to know or understand themselves better through the knowing of others in their learning environment. I see this as a good approach to help students develop the requisite self-confidence that they need to succeed after school.
My professional training in the ethnographic method and inquiry remains a unique asset to my pedagogical approach to teaching in the classroom. Ethnography as a technique and practice takes experience, reading, and writing as constitutive elements in the making of knowledge and the shaping of a humanistic scholarly disposition. Ethnography plays a central role in building knowledge and curating experiences that are vital to the teaching and learning process. I seek to make classroom learning natural and engaging by deploying appropriate ethnographic techniques – including interaction, drama, observation, participation, and interpretation – that seek to help students grasp and appreciate the teaching content. This ultimately leads learners to create a pool of lasting impressions, thus helping to build permanent learning experiences.
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Facilitator
Contemporary Issues in Fisheries Management. Fisheries Leadership Short course for Practitioners funded by USAID/Fisheries Recovery Activity Ghana.
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Presenter
International and Regional Fisheries Institutional Frameworks and Bodies. Workshop on Destabilising Impacts of Distant Water Fishing Vessels (DWFV) in the Gulf of Guinea Yaounde, Cameroon.
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Guest Speaker
“Promoting Research Excellence for Impact on Marine Conservation in Africa”, Institute for Oceans and Fisheries Online Seminar Series University of British Columbia, Canada.
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Co-Facilitator
“Grants Proposal Writing Workshop” University for Development Studies.
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Presenter
“Performance of the Africa Centre of Excellence in Coastal Resilience”, Country Round Table Workshop Association of African Universities (AAU), Online.
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Facilitator
“Regional Political Parties Dialogue on Fisheries: Protecting Our Fish, Securing Our Future, Live Engagement on JoyNews TV Centre for National Culture, Cape Coast.
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Presenter
Professorial Inaugural Lecture on the topic “Our Oceans: Securing Our Common Future through Transformative Research” Medical School Auditorium, University of Cape Coast.
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Presenter
Africa’s Plastic Revolution: Advancing Global Solutions for Healthy Oceans, T.D. Walter Bean Professorship Public Lecture University of Waterloo, Canada.
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Presenter
Expanding the Impact of Research on Africa’s Blue Economy. National Consultative Workshop for the Formulation of a National Blue Economy Strategy for Angola Luanda, Angola.
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Panelist
Regional Steering Committee Workshop for the World Bank West African Coastal Resilience Investment Projects (WACA ReSiP and ReiP2) Banjul, Gambia.
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Facilitator
Coastal Adaptation to Climate Change. Short-term Training Course funded by USAID Ghana.
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Co-Discussant
“Expanding the Impact of Blue Economy in Africa” (with Professor Rashid Sumaila) World Bank Headquarters, Washington.
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Facilitator
Workshop on “Winning Research and Development Grants in a Competitive World” Bolgatanga Technical University, Ghana.
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Facilitator
Workshop on “Proposal and Grants writing” University of Ghana, Ghana.
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Speaker
Study Tour on Sustainable Fisheries Management & Leadership University of Rhode Island, United States.
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Presenter
Vulnerability to Viability (V2V) Ghana Case Study. Bootcamp on moving fisheries from Vulnerability to Viability Puri, Delhi, India.
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Guest Speaker
Workshop Presentation on “Expanding the Impact of Research on Africa’s Blue Economy in Africa Hohai University, China.
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Participant
6th ACE Impact Regional Workshop of the World Bank and the Association of African Universities Accra (Online).
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Panelist
Seaweed (Sargassum) Invasion on the Ghanaian Coasts, Implications for the National Economy and Management Live TV Broadcast, GTV.
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Guest Speaker
“West African Fisheries”, Workshop by the Regional Universities Forum for Capacity Building in Agriculture (RUFORUM) University of Makerere, Kampala, Uganda.
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Team member, Contract for services to deliver a short course on Marine Litter under the OCPP
Cefas/UKAID
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Panel Chair, Reviewed Environmental Impact Statement of PECAN Energies for Offshore Exploration of Oil & Gas
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) of Ghana, Secondi/Takoradi
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Team member, Contract for development of a short course on Marine Litter for the West Africa Region
Ocean Country Partnership Program (OCPP) funded by Cefas/UKAID
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Team member, Contract services to conduct data collection surveys on abandoned lost or otherwise discarded fishing gear (ALDFG) in Ghana
Ocean Country Partnership Program (OCPP) funded by Cefas/UKAID
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Lead Consultant, Contract for the Development of Fishery Courses Syllabi for Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture Sciences (DoFAS), University of Liberia
IDA-V3100
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Panel Chair, Evaluation of Applications for recruitment of Environmental, Social Safeguards Officers for Ghana’s Ministry of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation (MESTI)
World Bank funded West Africa Coastal Areas Management Programme
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Lead Consultant, Consultancy to review and align national fisheries and aquaculture polices and laws with the PFRS, regional instruments and global best practices for 15 AU Member States
African Union – InterAfrican Bureau of Animal Resources (AU-IBAR)
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Lead Consultant, Mechanisms to Facilitate the Domestication of Global Instruments and Initiatives (2022)
African Union – InterAfrican Bureau of Animal Resources (AU-IBAR)
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Lead Consultant, Identification of Issues for SIDS, Development of Draft Strategic Positions for SIDS
African Union – InterAfrican Bureau of Animal Resources (AU-IBAR)
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Team member, Environmental Systems Analysis of the Avu Lagoon Protected area
Calgary Zoo Foundation
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Trainer, Conduct Marine Spatial Planning Workshop in Ghana
University of Liverpool
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Team member, Pre-feasibility study for nature-based intervention for Anlo Beach community in Ghana
Valued at US$32,365.00
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Team member, Marine Plastic Pollution Study in Liberia
Conservation International
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Team member, Vulnerability, Adaptation and Resilience in a Changing Climate - WACA -VAR Workshop
World Bank
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Consultant, Support Development of Multi-sector Resilience Investment Programme for the West Africa Coastal Area Management Program
World Bank
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Consultant, Issues and Opportunities in the Ghanaian Fishery Sector: Addressing the context, prospects and challenges
Marine Stewardship Council (MSC), United Kingdom
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Consultant, Estimations on renewable energy investments in Ghana
Highland Star Group (HSG) of Companies, Geneva, Switzerland
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Team Member, Regional Mapping of Experts and Institutions in Coastal management
World Bank
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Lead Consultant, Review of the Fisheries Act 2002 (act 625) and the Development of Draft Regulations for the conduct of Fisheries Impact Assessments
Ghana Industrial Trawlers Association (GITA) and GOGIG funded by DFID/UK
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Team member, Environmental baseline survey of water bodies in the Great Consolidated Diamond Ghana Limited (GCDGL) mining concession
AERC Ltd.
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Team member, Scoping Study on the Dredging of the Whin Estuary in the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolis
UCC Consultancy Unit/Consolidated Energy Ltd.
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Team member, Social Ecology of Anlo Beach Wetland of Ghana
Friends of the Nation/IUCN/French Global Environment Facility (GEF)
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Principal Investigator, Biodiversity Assessment of Urban Wetlands in the Western Region, Ghana with focus on Essei and Butuah Lagoons and the Whin River Estuary
USAID through Friends of the Nation