Performing Identities in Urban Spaces; Kampala, Uganda - Royal ...

Summer 2011
FIELDWORK
REPORT:
PERFORMING IDENTITIES IN URBAN SPACES;
KAMPALA, UGANDA
Rachel Fairfield, Hannah Clarke and Lauren Turner
- University of Sussex -

Acknowledgements
We would like to thank the Royal Geographical Society, without whom this research
would not have been possible; the staff and students of the School of Women and
Gender Studies at Makerere, and Mr Ronald Kalyango and Dr.Consolata Kabonesa in
particular; Evelyn Dodds, Grace Carswell and Mike Collyer at the University of Sussex
for all of their help over the last two years. Most importantly we want to thank the
participants of this study for their enthusiastic participation in this research project, for
giving their time so willingly and welcoming us so kindly.
The purpose of our fieldwork
This fieldwork was designed to uncover the ways in which identities are (re)produced
and constructed within and through urban spaces and institutions. This was a group
research project intended to inform three separate final-year undergraduate theses at
the University of Sussex. It was conducted in association with the School of Women and
Gender Studies at Makerere University, Kampala.
The Research Team
Rachel Fairfield – Rachel’s particular interest was in the experience of female students
at Makerere University, the intersection of the different strands of gender, faith and age
identites that were narrated and performed.
Hannah Clarke – Hannah was interested in the (re)construction of gendered identities
and stereotypes within school spaces, and the various power relations that help to
(re)enforce gender inequalities.
Lauren Turner – As a student of Development Studies, Lauren focussed primarily on the
role of Christian identity and church culture in a developing context.
Ronald Kalyango – As a lecturer at the School of Women and Gender Studies at the
University of Makerere, Ronald Kalyango, acted as a gatekeeper. He enabled us to make
contact with initial participants and formally introduced us to other institutions (see
appendix 1). As a team member, he was vital in ensuring our safety in country and
remained our first point of call regarding health and safety issues.
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Research Site
The Ugandan capital city of Kampala is a diverse cultural, linguistic, religious and ethnic
landscape that provides an interesting location for the study of identity. Kampala
constitutes the ideal research site as English is widely spoken, rendering research more
accessible. This fieldwork was conducted in August/September 2011 based on data
collected at the University of Makerere, Watoto and Life Church and St Annes Secondary
School 1 .
Map of Research Site
Watoto Church Central
University of Makerere
Life Church
Methodology
We used a triangulation of qualitative and quantitative methods and sampling in the
field to help critically analyse the performance of identity that is inevitably complex and
1 For ethical reasons the names have been changed of all of participants at the school and the locations that
might reveal their identities, as agreed with the school
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difficult to measure. The employment of these divergent methods was beneficial as they
produced outcomes that were unanticipated and directed the focus of our research.
To gain an in-depth understanding of the ways in which identities are experienced,
(re)constructed and performed, a qualitative methodology was favoured. Using a
qualitative methodology is well suited to the research of lived experiences, as it allows
one to locate the meanings which different people place on particular events and
structures (Muhanguzi 2011:715). This research took a case study approach, analysing
one particular school as examples, and makes no assumption of being statistically
representative (Van Donge 2006:184).
Participant observation
Observing the everyday behaviour of pupils and staff at St Annes, students at Makerere
and church attendants, allowed us to gain a deeper insight into the dynamics of their
everyday experience. Observations were taken during lessons and lectures, at church
services and events, and more generally around Kampala. Casual, informal
conversations and observations were used to complement formal data collected. This
also allowed us to see any discrepancies between what was said in interviews and real
life experiences (Van Donge 2006:182).
Quantitative Survey
A preliminary survey was conducted with the aid of the St Anne’s Geography teacher,
who also helped to explain the nature and purpose of the research to the students. The
survey, completed by 99 students, was designed to give an initial insight into the
attitudes of students towards schooling and their perceptions of gender differences,
rather than to provide any significant quantitative data. As such, it is only briefly
mentioned in the analysis.
Interviews
Interviews were semi-structured, allowing the participants to shape the direction of the
conversation, whilst ensuring that key themes of the research were discussed (Kane
1995:165).
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At St Annes, interviews were conducted in groups of two to four, which allowed
students to feel at ease and comfortable answering questions. This meant that a greater
number of discussions could be consolidated into a shorter space of time than would be
needed for individual interviews. Interviews were predominantly conducted in singlesex
groups, with two mixed groups to offer diversity.
Group Interviews and Focus Groups
Reinforcing interviews with focus groups indorsed greater depth and understanding;
personal perspectives developed as participants were able to feed from one another,
deliberate and consider new, alternative suppositions. The intense dialogue proved
time efficient when collating data yet minimised interference from ourselves. Focus
groups empowered participants to direct discussion whilst we observed interaction,
thus facilitating comprehension on a spectrum of experiences within the social and
geographical context.
Life Histories
Life histories were collected and recorded with six female students living in Kampala,
including undergraduates, graduates and mature students from Makerere University.
The aim of life histories is to give a voice to those stories and biographies that otherwise
go untold and unheard (Perks and Thomson, 1998: 101). This qualitative technique
allowed individual informants to narrate and give meaning to their unique experiences
and provided us with rich material and transcriptions on the topic of the performance of
identity.
Sampling / Participant Selection
Strike action at the University of Makerere and the resultant closure of the University
meant that rather than applying a formal sampling strategy to gain access to a crosssection
of the community, we instead used ‘snowball sampling’ (Kitchin and Tate 2000).
In an unfamiliar culture and whilst discussing potentially sensitive issues we all
considered this the most appropriate method to utilise. Initially our gatekeeper
introduced us to participants through whom we were able to network and secure
additional interviewees, and students who were interested in taking part in the life
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histories, thus avoiding any narrow direction in which using only a gatekeepers’
contacts may incur.
At all times, when approaching participants we ensured written or verbal consent was
granted. In so doing, we firstly revealed a little about ourselves, presented clearly the
aims of our fieldwork and the intended focus of discussions. We explained our
commitment to confidentiality and their right to withdraw at any time throughout the
research process. We further clarified the expected duration of interviews or focus
groups and ensured every participant understood all of the above before proceeding.
It was important to interfere as little as possible with the ordinary, everyday running of
the school, University and Church. To gain as true an insight into different experience as
possible, but also to not be a burden the institutional management or obstruct pupils’
learning, this research was conducted flexibly and adhered to no rigid sampling
strategy. Interviews were conducted in free periods and break times, with those pupils
and students who volunteered.
Wider Significance
This research is not intended to be representative of any group other than those who
participated in it. In fact, it is written as evidence of the multiplicity of peoples
experiences, as an example of the ways in which different individuals experience and
understand their identifications and their position in society in different ways.
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Key findings:
The increasing focus on identity in western academia is indicative of its importance;
influential and nuanced work puts identity and the individual at the centre of human,
social and cultural geographical concern (Hall 1992; Butler 1990; Valentine 2001; Pain
2001; Little 2002; Jackson 2005). Poststructuralists’ have moved away from static and
essentialist notions of identity, towards an understanding of self that is socially
constructed, shifting and multiple (Little 2002:35), explaining the ways in which
identities are fragmented, dislocated and de-centred, rather than stable, single and
integrated, influenced by multiple cultural landscapes (Hall 1992: 274). Identities are
constructed and transformed by dominant categories of gender, class, age and faith;
they are a site of constant negotiation, affected by expectations of ‘appropriate’ and
‘inappropriate’ behaviours or dress.
The role of Space and Institutions
Though conventionally institutions such as schools and universities have been thought
of as stable, built environments made of bricks and mortar, more recent studies
reconceptualise institutions as networks of resources, knowledge and power; which
both transform and are transformed by the people and places which create and sustain
them (Valentine 2001:141-2). The school as a social institution is understood, therefore,
not as a bounded entity, but as a network of power relations; between the students,
their families, the staff, the government and the spaces they interact in and across.
Institutions, such as schools, become characterised by power relationships of control
and discipline (Holloway and Hubbard 2001:187) and thus (re)produce social
hierarchies and inequalities. Within institutions particular behaviours and attitudes
become “predictable and routine” and are thus institutionalised (Goetz 1997:5).
Social and feminist geographers are interested in the ways in which identities and
spaces are constructed and gendered through performance (Little 2002:36). Social
identities and subjectivities are “intimately tied to the spaces through which people
practice and perform them” and are constructed in relation to systems of authority
which mark out the behaviours and identities which are deemed “appropriate” and
“inappropriate” (Del Casino 2009:203). Powerful agents in society control the way
spaces are constructed and as such they reflect the structural hierarchies of society
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(Holloway and Hubbard 2001:190). Holt studied the ways in which (dis)abled identities
are (re)constructed through discursive and performative practices in mainstream
primary schools (2004:220). Her research demonstrates how the spaces of education
develop “hidden curricula which ‘teach’ children appropriate identity positionings”
which are both gendered and (hetero)sexualised (Holt 2004:226). This hidden curricula
is not consciously enforced, but produced through the performance of dominant and
marginal identities (ibid). Gender identities and relations are negotiated and enforced
through this hidden curriculum (Dunne et al. 2006:78). Schools thus help to reproduce
the established social order as classrooms regulate children’s bodies and behaviour into
particular (hetero-normative) routines and practices (Del Casino 2009:202).
Space plays an active role in the construction of identity where particular behaviours,
activities and beliefs are deemed appropriate through cultural understandings and
meanings of particular places such as social institutions, the communities,
neighbourhoods, homes, shops, clubs and cafes all acquire meaning through different
identifications (Pain, 2001:141). The spatial divisions in the social institution of the
university created boundaries between and within groups. The data presented multiple,
intersecting identities that were constantly in a process of formation. (Jackson 2005).
The performance of female student identity on campus was a complicated course of
study to explore. The intersecting femininities, ethnicities, ages, and religions played a
central part in the students’ day to day lives. The performance and enactment of identity
was explored through the intersecting categories of gender, faith and the role of dress.
Gender is a key part of identity and self-identification. Butler’s term ‘performativity’ has
been used to explore the gender roles where performativity is defined as: “a repetition
and a ritual, which achieves its effects through its naturalization in the context of the
body, understood in part, as a culturally sustained temporal duration” (1999: XV). This
definition exemplifies that gender norms and roles are internalised in the body through
sustained and repeated acts in mundane day to day life. The term ‘performativity’ can
be broadened to explore other intersecting axes of identity that are performed
simultaneously.
Six life histories with female students were conducted and revealed the ways in which
girls experience campus life across different spatial and temporal contexts. After talking
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to undergraduate and postgraduate students we observed that they develop a dynamic
self-awareness. Female students narrated a sense of belonging and a sense of self
through their lived and emotional experiences at home and at university. The
intersection of gender, age and faith influence and shape the experience of “student” or
“campus” life, as they are performed on a day to day basis. The performance of gender
was presented amongst the female students through their activities that took place in
single-sex gender groups, for example: cooking, cleaning, washing clothes, studying,
worship, shopping, socialising, clubbing and looking after kin relations. Traditional
cooking was a skill passed down from the female’s mothers or aunties where the
cultural norm is that young girls will take on the domestic work when they start their
own families. These daily routines, rituals and practices reflect cultural norms and
values that are naturalised and internalised; they are taken-for-granted (Butler 1990).
The various forms of accommodation on campus (and just outside the site) were
spatially gendered; the majority of them single-sex ‘hostels’. The female students were
able to make friends and create social networks with the people in their hostels from
different religious and ethnic-tribe backgrounds. Study groups or ‘circles’ were set up
depending on what hall or hostel and from what faculty; this built up friendships from
an early stage. The construction of gender relations can be analysed here as central ”to
the spatial organisation of social relations” (Massey Cited in Callard 2004:220).
Therefore, multiple public and private spaces and places construct experiences and
shape gendered performances and different meanings of femininity.
The dominance of religion in the female student’s lives was evident in the construction
of space and place. Students were encouraged to attend weekly and daily services and
participate in events and celebrations. In addition, the Anglican and Catholic Churches
ran mid-week services for students, choir practices and usher met on Saturdays and
Communion and Morning Prayer for the public was on Sundays. Similarly, the Mosque
on campus and the Makerere University Muslim Students’ Association (MUMSA) had
different events for the Muslim freshers. In the Mosque they had daily prayer five times
a day and weekly prayer every Friday. When talking to undergraduates about their
experiences of starting university, most of the students referred to the religious
institutions being a source of comfort and identification.
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The social space of the Mosque is gendered where the boys pray down stairs and the
girls pray upstairs. It was observed that the girls could sit in the same room for
particular conventions but there was a clear divide and separation. Female MUMSA
committee members emphasised how the association had strengthened their faith as
female Muslims. The ‘Women’s Vision’, a programme for female Muslim students is run
by former students who discuss their experiences and advise any students who may be
struggling with issues such as finance, studying during Ramadan and making friends.
Both these examples highlight the intersection of gender and faith which created a
sense of community and belonging for the students. Religion appeared to be very
important in Kampala; the diverse religious landscapes seemed to coexist in relative
harmony, where people respected others beliefs and practices. Many students talked
openly about people converting to different religions out of personal choice. This was
accepted in society as long people conformed to the particular religious groups that
populated Kampala, the majority being Christians and Muslims and minority being
Hindus and Sikhs. The faith identities of being a Born-again Christian, Anglican, Catholic
or Muslim were performed individually and collectively on a daily basis and intersected
with the identity of being a female student. This addresses the interconnections
between social categorizations where space and place are significant in the process of
subject formations (Valentine: 2007: 11). The gendered division of education, social
institutions and social activities was clearly presented.
A number of studies have shown the ways in which gender inequities can be (and are)
(re)constructed and (re)enforced within schools in Sub-Saharan Africa (Jones 2011;
Muhanguzi 2011; Dunne 2007; Dunne et al. 2006; Mirembe and Davies 2001).
Consistent with the situation globally, Uganda’s schools are gendered spaces through
which discourses of conformity (re)enforce power imbalances and create pressure for
boys and girls to be “normal”. They are sites of constant surveillance, where
“appropriate” behaviour is rewarded and undesirable or “inappropriate” behaviour is
punished (Holloway and Hubbard 2001:186). It was fascinating to see the ways in
which gender discourses were played out in a Ugandan secondary school. Through
fieldwork in a “third class” fee-paying school, we were able to gain an understanding of
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the ways in which staff and pupils (re)produce and naturalise certain power relations
such as between teachers and pupils, and males and females through their everyday
actions and conversations within school spaces.
The Ugandan government has been increasingly engaged with gender issues, and has
introduced a number of policies intended to increase gender parity in schools and
universities (Molyneaux 2011; Jones 2011). This has created a discourse around gender
inequality that means people in Uganda are aware of the issues, but does not necessarily
mean that the complexities of gender are understood by all people, or that anything is
being actively done to affect change. It has been noticed elsewhere that new policies
frequently fail because those responsible for implementation at a school level fail to do
their part (Chapman et al. 2010:78). The teachers at St Annes School had not received
any training in gender. Despite being a young staff, several of whom were only one or
two years into their teaching careers, they had received no practical training in terms of
recognising or preventing an unequal school dynamic, nor were they enrolled in any
upcoming gender programme.
Reflexive of the situation in Uganda generally, school leadership tends to be patriarchal
and males tend to dominate all formal positions of power (Mirembe and Davies
2001:404). At St Annes there were only two female teachers, both of whom were part
time and one of which was not present during our time there. The head teacher and
others in administration were all male, as was the teacher nominated as “counsellor”
who was the students’ official point of contact for any complaints or problems. In
several areas, the staff and students believed the school policy was gender neutral, with
regards to prefects it was said that girls and boys had equal roles and were equally
represented on committee. However, the treasurer is always male and the secretary is
always female. This was not recognised as a case of gender stereotyping, but just ‘the
way things are’, the natural order of things.
These gender dynamics are embedded in the norms and practices of the school
institution so thoroughly that they remain largely unquestioned (Goetz 1997:5).
“Masculine dominance” is reinforced and girls subordinated through the gender
segregation of power and responsibilities (Dunne 2007:505). Several girls
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acknowledged the inequality implicit in a girl being refused a position as head prefect
purely on the basis if her gender, but felt powerless to affect change. The normalisation
of male leadership at St Annes silenced their objections, allowing the school to reinforce
hegemonic male leadership. Mirembe and Davies (2001) saw this unequal distribution
of responsibility, whereby girls are undermined in the school decision-making
processes, as worrying. Young girls at school are learning to be dependent on boys as
leaders, increasing the power imbalance between boys and girls, making them
vulnerable to exploitation (Mirembe and Davies 2001:406).
It became clear – through observations and interviews - that male students dominated
classroom space and conversation, and in-line with other studies, they tended to gain
more attention from teachers during lessons (Gaine and George 1999:42). Students
seating arrangements were not controlled by teachers but are reflective of students’
active role in gender segregation (Dunne 2007:506). With the exception of Senior 5 and
6 (where student numbers were very low), the back few rows of tables in every
classroom were exclusively occupied by boys, whilst girls and the few remaining boys
took their seats in the rest of the class. Just as in Dunne’s research, teachers reiterated
gender stereotypes when explaining this phenomenon, saying that it was because of the
opportunity for misbehaviour that boys sat at the back, whilst girls were cast as more
“compliant, co-operative and attentive” (Dunne 2007:507). In the lower classes in
particular this seating layout felt intimidating, as older, bigger males sat at the back of
the class ‘over-seeing’ the other students and creating an uncomfortable atmosphere.
The femininity emphasised by girls - quiet, sensible, well behaved, gives power to boys
who position themselves as louder and less-well behaved (Paechter 1998:20). It
appeared that girls in the lower classes (S1-4) felt shy to talk up in classrooms, however
outside of class girls were often more conscientious. This relies on girls taking the
initiative and having the confidence to approach teachers outside of class and so does
not necessarily counteract the effects of male classroom domination, though it is
evidence that pupils negotiate school spaces and relations in diverse ways.
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The Experience of Home
University and school were significant discursive places where students created and
negotiated their identifications. Similarly, the home was a discursive place where
females’ everyday choices were shaped by intimate ties in community and amongst kin
that influenced their decision making. The significant social relations and social spaces
and places shaped and co-produced their identities.
An interesting finding of this research is the extent to which the pupils at St Annes were
influenced by their familial experience and by their experience of male and female role
models. Traditionally, Uganda is a patriarchal society, and education has historically
been the preserve of male children, as female children were instead married young or
expected to support their mothers in the domestic running of the home (Mirembe and
Davies 2001:402). Though attitudes are changing in Uganda, it is still the boy-child
whose education is favoured in a majority of homes 2 . One teacher said that this is
because “ladies are still blamed for being pregnant” and so their employment
opportunities are much more restricted than males. As such, many parents cannot see
the value in schooling their daughters.
A significant number of girls spoke of a lack of support from male role models – fathers
or older male family members – saying that it is their mothers who support them
through school, whilst their fathers leave and have little, if any, contact with their
children. Many students came from female-headed households, where their mothers
were either widowed, separated or divorced, or had polygamous husbands who spread
their time between a number of homes. Many of the girls held very negative views of
men, which necessarily affected their relations with, and expectations of, boys and men
at school. For many girls it was a negative experience of fathers, or vulnerability to
abuse or exploitation from other older males, that encouraged them to continue their
education. They recognised completing school and educating themselves as an
important way of minimising the risk of exploitation.
2 Ratio of female to male secondary enrolment (% gross) was at 85% in 2010 in Uganda; Girls
enrolment was at 26%, whilst the boys was 30%. “Gross enrolment ratio is the ratio of total
enrolment, regardless of age, to the population of the age group that officially corresponds to the
level of education shown” (World Bank 2012)
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Several participants suggested that there has been a shift in recent years, and a growing
tendency among parents to see the girl-child and boy-child as equal. It was suggested
that this is perhaps a response to seeing a woman as Vice-President, or due to Uganda
having a female Speaker of Parliament. Seeing that other women have succeeded in
becoming successful and powerful through education may be inspirational for young
girls at school. Women are increasingly involved in Ugandan politics and decisionmaking,
though they remain in the minority. Women make up 24% of cabinet members
and 31% of MPs, though they only account for 17% of senior government positions and
inequalities still exist in property ownership and access to resources and economic
opportunities (UN 2009:9).
Traditional gender roles dictate that women are responsible for most of the domestic
work around the home and earn their living in gender-specific jobs such as tailoring,
cooking, or through selling fruits and vegetables. Meanwhile men are employed in
markets, businesses, construction work, driving taxis and boda-bodas: income
opportunities not deemed appropriate for women. At home, the majority of girls
interviewed were expected to help with chores including preparing meals, washing
clothes, mopping, sweeping and cleaning before they are able to attend to their
homework. Whilst boys also have chores – most commonly fetching water or logs – it
was the girls who found these chores a particular disadvantage, as their duties were
time consuming.
According to the experiences of participants economic lack is the main barrier to
receiving a good level of education. This difficulty is experienced in different ways
according to a person’s identity, their family background, class, age and in particular
their gender. Though both sexes struggle to find school fees, it is easier for male
students to take on casual and manual work to earn money quickly. Several students
explained that jobs considered appropriate for girls, including domestic and shop work,
require such long hours and commitment that it would not be possible to work
alongside schooling. Instead, many rely on hand-outs from older, earning males - often
“boda-boda” (motorcycle) drivers - putting them at risk of unwanted pregnancy and
sexually transmitted infections. The discourse surrounding employment therefore
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creates a cyclical problem as girls drop out of school without completing, thus
sustaining and reproducing the gender inequalities in education.
Embodiment
Clothes or ‘dress’ constitutes an essential part of shaping the social body. Cultural,
religious, ethnic, gender and generation identities are expressed visually and
symbolically through dress, determining who belongs and who does not. Dress was
performed, enacted and embodied by the students, imbued with socio-cultural meaning
(Barnes and Eicher, 1992).
The female body can be conceptualised as a non-dualistic body where experiences are
felt within the body and mind (Longhurst 1995). Embodied subjectivities allow a better
understanding of individual and unique experience that can be expressed through
different narratives performed in space and place (1995:100). In this section I shall
explore faith embodiment through the discourse on the veil in Islam. Where the cultural
construction of the Muslim female body is understood and influenced by plural bodily
techniques and behaviour. The discourse of veiling is informed through the social
learning of Islam, where there are multiple and contested meanings and practices of
veiling that vary across cultures (Dwyer, 2008).
Faith and ‘The Veil’
The embodiment of faith identities can be explored through the various forms of veiling
amongst Muslim girls on campus. From the different life histories we have gathered that
the process of veiling is perceived as being primarily about their devotion to Allah and
subsequently about modesty. Female embodiment of the Muslim faith is presented
through the veil which is culturally and religiously appropriate for girls and women to
embody the Islamic value of modesty. Through the narrative performances the girls
expressed their bodily experiences of physically and psychologically wearing and
adopting the veil. Their identities as Muslim women were produced, embodied and
performed. During their interviews in their homes they did take off their veils in our
presence and in front of other females during prayer. The relationship of embodiment
and place plays a part in the production of meaning, where different public and private
settings require different meaning and social learning of Islam and faith.
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Conclusions
Identity can no longer be viewed as a single coherent ‘self’; it is plural, where multiple
identities are negotiated and constructed through space. Social and cultural theory on
identity reveals identities to be relational to a number of things (Hall, 1992). The female
students and pupils interviewed at the university, school and church and in their homes
were influenced by social relations of significant people and different spatial and
temporal contexts. The informants interviewed revealed an awareness of their
subjective personhood and identity, but this was to a great extent influenced by their
social and cultural contexts. The spatial divisions in the social institutions created
boundaries between and within groups. The data presented multiple, intersecting
identities that were constantly in a process of formation, interchangeable and relational
(Jackson: 2005). These identities are enacted, performed and embodied.
The outcome of the empirical data revealed our informants’ identities to be fragmented,
dislocated and de-centred subjects, influenced by multiple cultural landscapes (Hall,
1992: 274). From our observations presented in this study the students’ sense of self
and personal identity was extended, shifted and transformed by the dominant
categories of gender, age and faith, and the role of dress, which were encountered on a
daily basis. The university, school and church were significant discursive places where
people created and negotiated these identity categories. The significant social relations
and social spaces and places shaped and co-produced their identities.
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Fig 1:
16

Fig 2:
17

Fig 3:
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Fig 4:
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Fig 5:
Limitations
The method used produced a great deal of useful and interesting data, however there
were a number of limitations which necessarily affected the material collected:
Researcher Positionality:
Our group identity as white European females was significant in this study and all data
collected was necessarily affected by how we were viewed (Momsen 2006). There was a
risk that the unequal power relations between a researcher from a wealthy country and
participants in an impoverished area at a “poor” school could be problematic (Van Blerk
2006:57; Harrison 2006:64). The effect of this was minimised by several factors. The fact
that I was known to be staying at an orphanage five minutes from the school made my
situation more relatable for participants - one boy from the orphanage also attended St
Annes which helped make me a “known” entity. This, alongside the fact that I came to
them as a student, appears to have minimised the expectation of monetary benefits for
participation (Van Blerk 2006:57). In fact, despite describing their struggles to find fees
to attend school and the lack of resources, not a single person at the school once asked
me for so much as a pen.
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Students seemed quick to trust us, perhaps because we were working within a “known”
environment. The fact that all interviews were conducted in a space they knew well and
at their convenience helped to ensure that they were comfortable and felt free to speak
openly. The fact that we are all students helped us to be more approachable, particularly
among the A-Level pupils whom we were close to age. As we were introduced to the staff
as students working with the School of Women and Gender Studies at Makerere (see
appendix 1), they were able to view us as undergraduate students - a much less
threatening identity than that of “foreign researcher”.
Environment
There is always a risk, particularly in school-based studies that students will provide
answers that they “think you want to hear”, rather than giving true accounts of their
experiences (Van Blerk 2006:55). Over the course of the interviews, which in most cases
were 45minutes to an hour long, contradictory accounts were given and we have had to
use our judgement and observations to determine the most likely truth (Harrison
2006:65). Though every effort was taken to explain to participants that there were no
right answers and that the research was only interested in their real life experiences, it
was important to analyse material gathered with this limitation in mind. It is also very
possible that some pupils and students felt unable to speak freely for fear of getting into
trouble with the institutional authorities. This may also explain why the majority of
students were unwilling to claim first-hand experience of, for example, relationships with
teachers or older men, instead reporting cases of other students who had become
pregnant or been expelled.
Conducting research in an unfamiliar cultural context proved challenging, especially in
the early phases. Although English is widely spoken, particular words and phrases needed
defining, thus allowing us to engage in a locally relevant manner and decipher
participants’ intended meaning. For ethical reasons we avoided talking about sexuality
and ethnicity because these were sensitive topics that were not openly talked about
amongst our participants. These are important points of analysis to consider when
researching identity in social geography which have been discussed in relation to gender
and ‘race’ and are key components when studying ‘young adults’.
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Getting acquainted with our surroundings and ‘normal’ behaviour took time, which, while
necessary, encroached upon research or networking time. Our time in the field was
restricted by University term times both in Uganda and the UK; we could not go to
Kampala until term began due to our fourth (in-country) team-member being
unavailable, and had to return in time for the beginning of the academic year at Sussex.
Limitations were expected, thus we prepared for this by networking prior to our arrival
in Kampala. Similarly, punctuality proved problematic, the phrase “this is Africa” (TIA)
was frequently used in reference to participants being late for arranged meetings.
Altered plans
We were unable to access Watoto Church because of all the bureaucracy in place, despite
numerous meetings and communication before we arrived in Uganda. As a result our
participant observation within that organisation was limited and we were unable to gain
more than a surface impression of their workings. Instead we made contact with another
evangelical Church, which proved to be most fruitful.
On the 1 st of September it was announced that the University of Makerere had been
closed indefinitely as a result of strike action by university lecturers, and neither the
media nor our contacts were able to anticipate when it would reopen. This was where
our gatekeeper worked and where we were to meet many of our initial participants; it
was also where we were able to network and arrange meetings. The strike thus created
many difficulties for the team. Due to the strikes we were not being able to fully explore
the lived experience of “campus life”. We acknowledge that our aim to discover the
influence of the university as a social institution and its influence on informing identity
was limited.
Campus was dangerous during the strikes as there was threat of violence and ‘tear gas’,
we overcame this by texting students at Makerere to inquire as to the safety of travelling
through town onto campus.
Methodology
The use of a flexible sampling methodology and volunteerism obviously affected the data
collected as it is likely that students who volunteered their spare time to answer research
22

questions are likely to be among the most conscientious students so may not provide a
representative sample of the student population. However volunteerism means that
pupils did not feel obligated to participate because their teachers had sanctioned the
research, thus avoiding a tricky ethical dilemma (Van Blerk 2006:57).
This research was undertaken in the first three weeks of a new school term, and numbers
were low at the beginning as pupils “searched for fees”. It follows therefore that those
pupils who were present at the beginning of term are those who face the fewest barriers
to accessing education, and pupils who were absent represent the students who face the
greatest obstacles.
Budget
Below is a table showing our total project expenditure for all living costs and expenses
for the duration of the project as well as pre-departure preparation.
Daily Group Expenditure Group Total
Flights £ 1,900.00
First Aid Course £ 60.00
Insurance £ 300.00
Vaccinations + Anti-Malarials £ 150.00
Accommodation £ 16.80 £ 705.00
Food and Travel £ 16.90 £ 680.00
Visa £ 93.00
Safari £ 573.00
Total £ 4,461.00
Incident Report
We did not encounter any serious health or safety issues whilst in Kampala. We had
minor injuries that required basic first aid, such as stubbed toes, and on two occasions
members of the team had difficulty keeping small wounds clean. Insect bites were a
problem, but we were well-equipped with repellents, nets, and aftercare.
23

One of us was almost mugged in the Old Taxi Park in broad daylight, although slightly
shaken, no injury was caused and stolen items were retrieved.
Presentations and other Outputs
- Q and A with Sussex Geography students also applying for field work grants
- Presentation of findings to Sussex Geography Society
- Due to the closure of Makerere University due to the strikes, we were unable to
present fully our key findings to students and Staff as our research seminar had
to be cancelled
- Dissemination of field work report to gatekeeper and interested participants
- Produced three independent geography undergraduate theses
Experiences and the dissertations produced as a result will remain as evidence of
analytical and research skills developed throughout the process.
This was a very challenging fieldwork trip; we had to overcome a number of difficulties
and obstacles. Nonetheless, it proved a brilliant experience, made possible by the
support we received from our University and the RGS. We are looking forward to
conducting further research in the future and maintaining links in Kampala.
Our time in Uganda was invaluable, and thoroughly enjoyable; it has given us great
confidence and a chance to develop new skills and a thirst to continue an academic
career in geography.
24

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APPENDIX 1:
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