Traditionally the Mursi have been semi-nomadic pastoralists, moving as required to feed their livestock. This now appears to be changing with the damming of rivers to produce hydro-electricity and to enable the broad-scale irrigated agricultural production of crops such as sugar cane and cotton (http://www.mursi.org/change-and-development) . Where this leaves the Mursi and other tribes remains to be seen.
A girl’s lower lip is cut, by her mother or by another woman of her settlement, when she reaches the age of 15 or 16. The cut is held open by a wooden plug until the wound heals, which can take around 3 months. It appears to be up to the individual girl to decide how far to stretch the lip, by inserting progressively larger plugs over a period of several months. The Mursi are a very egalitarian community in many ways, and it is the choice of the teenage girls to have their lips pierced, and not something older women or men force upon them (http://www.mursi.org/introducing-the-mursi/Body%20Decoration/lip-plates).
Tourism brings cash into these remote villages although you do wonder how much of the 'show' is based on the traditions of the tribe and how much on wanting to provide a colourful and interesting spectacle for the visitors.
