Documentary Projects Shortlist

The chaotic withdrawal of the US and allied forces from Afghanistan in August 2021 spelled the end of a hugely expensive and ultimately futile 20-year-long attempt at nation building following the terrorist attacks of 9/11.

Having sustained a low-level insurgency across the country for two decades, the Taliban forces who were once in charge of Kabul were quickly deprived of the two main sources of government income: foreign aid and billions of dollars of government reserves deposited abroad that were promptly frozen. Since then, the already fragile economy, which was reliant on foreign aid to cover three quarters of its budget, has largely collapsed. Now, half of the country’s 40 million people don’t have enough to eat and more than one million children are severely malnourished and at risk of starvation.

For Mads Nissen (Denmark, 1979) photography is all about empathy - creating understanding and intimacy while confronting contemporary social issues such as inequality, human rights violations and our often destructive relationship with nature.

He has been awarded ‘The World Press Photo of the Year’ in 2015 and 2021 and has received more than 75 international awards. He frequently gives lectures and workshop and his work can be seen in mass media as well as at exhibitions and his books.