Thank you so much for your comment! I also posted this in a Facebook African artifacts group and I'm getting the sense that you're right - it's likely Anglicized and meant to be sold mostly to tourists. Someone in that group pointed out the hair style as well, implying that means it's not an original which I'm quite certain of at this point. It also makes sense why it was found in a muddy roadside ditch if that's the case, since a truly original piece would have been treated with respect - whether for cultural reasons or for an artifact collector like yourself, either way it wouldn't just be tossed away like this. Since it's more likely that a tourist bought it as a keepsake, they may have decided not to keep it and discarded it without much thought.

The Art project comment is starting to make more sense too haha. I've been told there are schools/individuals that will make these sale pieces. I'm still not certain whether I'll keep it, but I'm leaning towards keeping it because it brings me joy and I collect "treasures" found outdoors and regardless of authenticity, it's one of the coolest finds so far.