Global Compact International Yearbook 2013
69
appropriate public policies and state interventions needed in
order to plan strategically, regulate, and monitor investment
as well as to ensure that the presence of the private sector be
harnessed to meet the development objectives determined by
the countries and the governments concerned.
A useful example of recognition of the above is a 2011 re-
port of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa
(
UNECA), which sets out recommendations for the mining
sector in Africa in order to encourage it to become a catalyst
for sustainable, intergenerational, and equitable development.
With regard to CSR, the report is clear: “From a policy perspec-
tive, CSR initiatives should not be considered a substitute for
government responsibility toward its citizens in providing
basic infrastructure and other public goods. Indeed, CSR ini-
tiatives should complement government efforts through local
government institutions and local authorities.”
Significantly, CSR projects could reduce the motivation of
governments to fulfill their responsibilities to citizens, and
the latter could come to see the company as the provider of
those services for which they should be looking to the state.
Better coordination between the planning and investment
of the state and corporate outlays under CSR could improve
the value of both streams of expenditure. For example, the
sustainable use of a school or clinic built as part of a CSR
strategy is more likely if the project is coordinated with the
state to ensure that it fits into a larger plan and that the state
can support health staff or teachers should the mine halt its
support. Finally, the norms according to which CSR initiatives
are undertaken should be part of a national policy debate on
the mining industry’s obligations regarding social development
objectives. Indicators needed to assess the impact of good CSR
projects must be built into a nationally derived framework
and applied by a range of stakeholders, including civil soci-
ety. The framework must focus on stakeholder consultation
and allow for a review of obligations and commitments. This
review must be based on reporting requirements that should
be part of the CSR framework.
In the end, companies have the following responsibilities:
1)
Signing contracts in a transparent manner and making
these public; 2) paying fair royalties and taxes in a transparent
manner; 3) respecting the laws of the country in which they
operate, international obligations, and human rights obliga-
tions. Should companies wish to contribute in other ways to
the sustainable development of the countries in which they
operate, the guidelines set out by UNECA leave little doubt
as to how best to proceed.
Bonnie Campbell is Professor at the
University of Quebec in Montreal,
Faculty of Political Science and Law.
CSR in Africa
Agenda