Is the sole mission of business enterprises, public or private, small or gigantic to find ways of bagging lucrative profits out of their business dealings at the expense of everything else?
This is a question raised by many. In the meantime Ambassador of Sweden to Ethiopia, Jan Sadek after welcoming guests to a conference recently channeled here on the issue of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), raised a similar question to the audience.
“Do companies have a responsibility for their economic, environmental, and social impact on society? Sweden believes so. Swedish companies have a long history of active CSR work and the nation is viewed as a pioneer within the field. Events like the one we are hosting here today are crucial to enhance knowledge about, as well cooperation on, CSR work” said Ambassador Jan on his opening speech.
The notion of Corporate Social Responsibility is generally perceived as a business approach that contributes to sustainable development by delivering economic, social and environmental benefits for all stakeholders.
CSR is becoming more mainstreamed as forward-thinking companies embed sustainability into the core of their business operations to create shared value for business and society. It is argued that “Sustainability isn’t just important for people and the planet, but also is vital for business success”.
As Ethiopia is a nation with a rapidly growing economy and widely spreading private and public enterprises competing for profits, the issue of ethical business operation and social responsibility come in to question. Hence the conference organized by the alumni network from the Swedish Institute Management Program of 2015 in collaboration with the Swedish Institute and the Embassy of Sweden aims at kindling a firsthand knowledge regarding ethical and effective CSR – Ethiopian perspective.
Undertaking socially responsible initiatives is not necessarily an act of charity but a truly win-win situation, where ethical and responsible corporations are very likely to maintain good will of their products and services and establish a sustainable business. Not only will the companies appeal to socially conscious consumers and employees, but they will also make a real difference in the world. Accordingly, one should keep in mind that in CSR, transparency and honesty about what one’s business enterprise is doing are paramount to earning the public’s trust.
Up on his presentation on the conference, Murad Issa, who conducted his MA research on CSR explains what a company’s CSR strategy constitutes: actions to ensure the company operates honorably and ethically, actions to protect and sustain the environment, actions to enhance employee well-being and make the company a great place to work, actions to promote workforce diversity, and actions to support philanthropy, participate in community service and better the quality of life worldwide, bottom-line attaining excellence in economic, social and environmental dimension.
He also gave details in his presentations a review of a survey on the Ethiopian company trends in relation to CSR. Accordingly, it is found that there is 100 percent positive attitude in implementing CSR, where as 40 percent of companies are positive on periodical disclosure of information. It is interesting that, 80 percent believe in fair wages & security of employment in principle, yet in cross validation 69 percent of employees not happy with companies’ policies. 71 percent of customers thought they were manipulated by business corporations 75 percent of general public not pleased with CSR from Ethiopian companies.
Nevertheless, integration of CSR strategies in profit-driven corporations is guaranteed to reward investors and entrepreneurs with increased reputation and buyer patronage, reduced risk of reputation-damaging incidents, lower turnover costs and enhanced employee recruiting and workforce retention, increased opportunities for revenue enhancement, support for the long-term interests of owner/shareholder which of course are manifestations of sustainable business practices, as explained by Murad.
Emerging entrepreneurs in Ethiopia, who are said to be good models in incorporating CSR strategies in their businesses, appeared on the conference to share their experiences. Social entrepreneurs like Kibret Abebe of Tebita Ambulance, Yasser Bagersh of Our Father’s Kitchen passionately preached on how they were and are well paid back by giving away. Yasser confirms that, business owners like that of himself need to dedicate themselves in helping out the society, not necessarily in a form of charity, but in an ethical and responsible manner and the payments for that are far more than mere profit.
The ambassador further notified that, there are many aspects within CSR that need to be addressed. The work with human rights is a prioritized aspect for the Swedish Government. All Swedish companies are expected to respect human rights in all their operations and that they act to prevent human rights abuses. The Government encourages the private sector to follow the OECD’s guidelines for multinational companies, to apply the ten principles of the UN Global Compact and follow the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.
He further added that, gender equality is another important aspect of CSR work. Companies should offer equal opportunities for women and men to rise to leadership positions; make it possible to combine work and family, and encourage shared participation in childcare.
There are several Swedish companies setting good examples with CSR work. The clothing company H&M, which is also active in Ethiopia, is at the forefront in integrating a sustainable approach to business. It has an eco-clothing line called Conscious Collection. It also works actively with its suppliers to promote labor rights and reduce environmental impacts, insists Ambassador Jan.
In general, it is true that decisions made behind closed doors about social responsibility are very tricky since people will never know where donations are really going unless companies engage employees and consumers in giving back.
In its nature, CSR is a topic which extends across several policy areas like corruption, ethics, environment, gender and labor issues where the government is supposed to act on it. Hence, the government need to take research based actions in enforcing CSR strategies in Ethiopia, since it has a pivotal role in ensuring sustainable economic growth while concurrently mitigating social and environmental impacts of business both in the country and around the world.
This article was taken from here.