When the buzzword named corporate social responsibility (CSR) was introduced to the world it had an eerie and unreal aura of some sacred halo to hang around the corporate neck. Not only did most get it wrong as a concept that was a strange hybrid between philanthropy and donation, most wanted a box that could be ticked off, look good in the annual accounts and please shareholders that had little idea of where the money was going. This was when the economic circle was heading downwards. When the revival happened, budgets were suddenly hard to find.
Last year, major businesses took a bashing for having rushed in to where angels fear to tread and Deutsche Bank is still trying to figure out how to pay off a staggering penalty imposed by the United States. Hard-nosed corporate heads have been periodically replaced by more sensitive ones and all on a sudden the diktat for the year is 'responsible' business embracing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).There are some 190 to be addressed and the Global Compact is leaning in businesses to shoulder some of these. Governments, especially in developing countries, have provided generous tax-breaks for company CSR activity. That on its own has created headaches.
Defining CSR has become more complicated and it's almost like each to its own. But there's a fair bet that support to SDGs could work as an acceptable solution. In the middle of all this Bangladesh Bank is set to issue guidelines for CSR to banks, suggesting that some of the profits are utilised for societal benefit. Whether this is also designed to deflect criticism of the free-for-all in siphoning of deposits, is up in the air. The Prime Minister's Office (PMO) has a senior bureaucrat assigned to ensure the SDGs are implemented and it would be a crying shame if the Bangladesh Bank guidelines are not supportive of these. Rules and guidelines should be as such, flexible enough to encompass individual company requirements given that multinationals have globally arching policies that aren't negotiable.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's active participation at the Davos summit is impressive; her call for a summit to be held in Dhaka even more so. Maybe, this is where multinationals can be prevailed on to flex their policies so as to support activity that their end-markets require. There are companies more forward looking than others who have set up trusts or foundations to channel their CSR spend. One just hopes that those jumping on to the bandwagon don't derail the rest. Given that's where most of their future profits will come from it isn't a bad idea at all. The pivotal question however, is whether this is window-dressing in a new form or worse an escape route from misadventures. That would be a pity.
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- Saturday, 23 November 2024 |
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