Fieldworkers play a critical role in health research practices in most international research centres in Africa, including seeking informed consent, collecting basic samples and maintaining good relationships with communities involved in research. Overall, the integrity of research and the scientific and ethical outputs generated by most international research centres in Africa rely heavily on fieldworkers; whose practices and ability to adhere to international and local scientific and ethical standards and guidelines determine the quality of data collected. Recently, literature has highlighted concerns related to the quality of data collected by fieldworkers, attributable to lack of or limited support given to fieldworkers by lead researchers or study coordinators. In addition, training aimed at building fieldworkers’ soft skills to enable them deal with their everyday ethical, communication and relational challenges with potential research participants and study communities have been reported to be fragmented and ad hoc. Trends in health research investment in Africa have focused more on infrastructural, skill transfer and career development for senior researchers and scientists. Much less has been done to understand what support and influence performance management systems have in enhancing fieldworkers’ ability to promote ethical research practices and integrity. This study aims to fill this gap. Health research frontline staff play a critical role in promoting health research practices in Africa. Popularly known as fieldworkers, their practices influence scientific and ethical standards as well as the overall integrity of research. While global guidance typically calls for fair collaboration, the need to enhance the capacity of African institutions has necessitated an increase in focus and support directed towards infrastructural, skill transfer and career development of African researchers, scientists and institutions. However, relatively little attention has been directed towards performance management, capacity building and general institutional support for fieldworkers. An in-depth understanding of current fieldworkers’ performance management systems and institutional support in Africa can offer important insights on what strategies could be employed to strengthen fieldworkers’ day to day practices and ultimately inform policies and guidelines that can be used to improve the quality and integrity of research in Africa and other similar settings.