Recommendation 10

HM Government Acknowledged

Much of our work is focussed on changing attitudes towards development with the aim of facilitating positive and lasting change in low-income countries, while promoting UK interests. We are committed to dismantling harmful narratives, swaying public opinion and producing communication products that contribute towards ending systemic racism in the sector. We actively oppose objectifying or ‘othering’ of people in low-income countries and reject the use of communication products that evoke pity and helplessness and which attack human dignity. It is standard practice for permission to be sought from individuals regarding their participation in any of our communication activity and most recently there has been a shift towards supporting low-income countries to shape their own development narratives. By ensuring the communities we work with are active rather than passive participants, we represent people as individuals to whom the viewer can relate. The organisations which deliver UK Aid Match appeals are required to follow the principles outlined by The Narrative Project, a research and communications tool that is focused on changing the development narrative in the United Kingdom and beyond by giving guidance on how to communicate about development to overcome outdated stereotypes. Created by a group of leading organisations specialising in global equity issues, The Narrative Project requires the use of imagery which is not pity based and language which is about developing independence rather than an over-reliance on aid or reinforcing old- fashioned development tropes. All communications must show independence, shared values, partnership, and progress. The FCDO and Comic Relief’s 10-year partnership programme, Shifting the Power: Strengthening African Civil Society will invest up to £60m (up to £30m from FCDO) in strengthening the capacity and sustainability of locally- led CSOs in Ghana, Zambia and Malawi that are working in areas which are a priority for both the FCDO and Comic Relief: early childhood development, gender justice, safe and secure shelter and mental health. Locally-led, Southern-based CSOs will be supported to become more effective, sustainable and better able to represent local people’s priorities. By championing local CSOs and empowering them and their stakeholders to tell their own stories, the Communications Strategy on this programme will ensure that the content that is created is as useful for them in their local markets as it is for the FCDO and Comic Relief in the UK. In this way the communications content will contribute to the programme objective of building the capacity of local CSOs by increasing their local market exposure and by instructing the media agencies that we fund to give local partners a voice in how their work should be represented.