Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is old hat in the Western world. But how does it work in countries, where consumer and media pressure is almost non-existent? What chances does CSR have in - let's say - Nigeria, Africa? Does our Western concept work there? Does anyone care at all? One thing is for sure: More and more large companies are taking a close look at their supply chains in terms of environmental and social responsibility credentials. Not only because they believe in CSR as such, but because they are afraid of damaged reputation - and, ultimately, profit losses.
Nigerians are well known for their business sense. Still, a vast majority of Nigerians live in poverty, relying on God alone for help. Does a country of such strong belivers, some of whose churches regularly count up to 50,000 people at the same service, care about corporate behaviour? Most people don't, according to a survey, situating Nigeria together with India and Russia as one of the least demanding consumer markets worldwide. A bit of school sponsoring here, some media effective social support there - philanthropy seems prevalent in this West African federal republic with its almost 155 million inhabitants. CSR activities are often undertaken as a way of promoting a company’s image.
As the corporate responsibility website csr-weltweit puts it "Nigeria has a well-established 'culture of charity'; wealthy individuals and institutions contribute to charitable causes and use these contributions to garner positive publicity. In this respect there is little difference between the political realm and private industry."
Still, there are some promising examples of CSR in Nigeria, such as Access Bank's "Going green, beyond words" initiative. In 2009, the country has also tried to introduce a mandatory "CSR corporate tax"; money it would spend on CSR activities. Many promptly criticized the move as a mere excuse to generate more tax revenue, abusing the meaning of CSR. As CSRDigest notes: "Perhaps the bill is not the best means by which this goal can be achieved, but a quick review of the facts will demonstrate that Nigeria has been war-ridden for decades, and only recently has it begun to flourish, notably through its fast-growing telecommunications sector and other businesses. Despite this recent investment and consequent increase in wealth, 92% of the 140 million Nigerians are living on less than $2 per day."
This might be well true (unfortunately), but is it a valid excuse not to invest in CSR? The opposite, I would argue. If not the companies, who else can realistically help improve the situation? Many hopes were on the recently deceased former Nigerian president Umaru Yar'Adua, whose successor, Goodluck Jonathan was sworn in this Thursday. Will he be able to maintain the stability between the Christian South and the Muslim North? How will this change affect the country's move towards corporate responsibility?
Excerpt culled from another article!
