The Spectacularization of NGOs Accountability in Disaster Situations: Evidence From the 2015 Nepal's Earthquakes

ABSTRACT Drawing on Guy Debord's concept of the spectacle, this article aims to extend our understanding of the way in which certain non‐governmental organizations (NGOs) spectacularize their performance in the context of disaster situations and the continued co‐existence of a multiplicity of accountabilities, with reference to the 2015 Nepal earthquakes. Data for the study were gathered through semi‐structured interviews and document analysis. The findings of the study demonstrate how the voices of many Nepalese NGOs involved in the relief, recovery, and rehabilitation efforts following the 2015 earthquakes remained unheard and how they were forced to compromise their felt responsibilities by having to adhere to the control‐oriented and accounting‐based requirements imposed by the government and funders. Such requirements put certain NGOs, which were established to pursue political and personal goals, in a position to benefit from the situation, allowing them to obfuscate the ground level reality, for instance by manipulating the number of beneficiaries and geographical areas served, showcasing their performance on social media, and facilitating pseudo‐ceremonies and participation. The spectacle created by NGOs was oppressive, exacerbating inequalities in aid distribution and excluding certain groups of beneficiaries from the relief, recovery, and rehabilitation efforts. The key contribution of the study lies in illustrating how both wider society and NGOs’ stakeholders have been relegated to the role of passive spectator–consumers, as they accepted and consumed the NGO‐led representation.