Interesting paper on the Rana Plaza disaster, photography and accountability from @nomhossain and Ismail Ferdous. https://accountabilityresearch.org/publication/picturing-accountability-what-we-learned-from-the-photography-of-the-rana-plaza-disaster/

I know the paper focusses on that disaster, but there's another/related way photography supports struggles for accountability. 1/n

We @Act4Integrity often see citizens taking (basic) photos of, say, a school under construction - highlighting problems like shallow foundations, or a lack of access ramps.

They also take photos of the contract and specifications, if they can get hold of them. 2/n

Such visual evidence is v useful when they get into a meeting with local officials and raise these issues. Many people have access to this kind of photography - though not all.

But we also find some projects/services are much easier to photo than others. 3/n

This made me wonder whether the Rana Plaza disaster was easier to depict visually than, say, the failure of social protection in some places in the wake of #covid19. And what does that mean for the accountability struggle.

Of course - it doesn't have to be about visuals. 4/n

A radio interview can be powerful; it can avoid (or engender) victimisation; it can frame citizens' demands. It's not so easily shareable (digitally) but if the context has low internet penetration & the accountability struggle is playing out there, it could spread faster. 5/n

This is hardly ground breaking, of course we adjust strategy/tactics for the context. But it struck me that a number of the paper's conclusions would apply to any storytelling format. (They are no less important for that.) 6/n

And the most "accountability-specific" use of photography I could think of is its role in supporting specific, evidence-based demands - comparing what's promised & what's delivered.

You could say that's a "financial accounting and legal liabilities entry point"... 7/n

Anyway, very interesting. Read @nomhossain's blog on @TAInitiative for a good overview. Full paper is of course via @AcctResearchCtr, hats off to you all.

https://www.transparency-initiative.org/blog/7248/picturing-accountability/

/ends