PR TIMES AFRICA PR TIMES AFRICA Magazine june 2015 | Page 12

is practiced just by the Oil and
Gas “multinationals” in the
country. Just the multinationals
because the local oil and gas
corporations have no viable CSR
agenda, talk more of project and
the so called multinational oil and
gas corporations use their CSR
has a means of conflict resolution
and appeasement. Oil and gas
multinationals use their CSR
agenda as a source of “indirect
bribery”. They implement CSR
agendas after an oil spillage has
occurred, when they want to
secure more land rights etc. while
this act of “Corporate Indirect
Bribery” should be frowned at
and corporations encouraged to
engage in CSR as a social good,
it is pertinent to say this is better
than nothing as most of the social
infrastructures in the Niger delta
are the benefits of CSR from such
international oil and gas
corporations.
Most corporations
engage in CSR
activities because of the
benefits that accrue to
its practice.
Some corporations
have used CSR as
a means of
good Public Relations,
while others use CSR
as a means of dispute
or conflict resolution
numerous challenges that Nigeria
faces as a country. Corporations
have the potential to contribute to
the growth and development of
Nigeria through their CSR
agenda. This is not to overrule the
role of The Government.
Government also have the
responsibility to provide an
enabling environment for CSR to
thrive.
The EU's Green Paper on CSR
defined it as a concept whereby
companies integrate social and
environmental concerns in their
business operations and in their
interaction with their stakeholders
on a voluntary basis. More
recently, McWilliams and Siegel
defined CSR as actions that
appear to further some social
good, beyond the interest of the
firm and that which is required by
law. Based on these definitions it
is right to say that there is no
form of CSR in Nigeria. This is
quite unfortunate considering that
this is a country that needs it
desperately. It is an established
fact that CSR has the potential to
foster sustainable development
thus practising CSR in Nigeria
can be a major avenue for its
transition from a third world
country to a “second world”
country in no time. The benefits
of CSR cannot be
overemphasized, considering the While CSR has the potential to
contribute to sustainable
development, however, CSR
cannot achieve this feat without
good governance. Nigerian
Corporations can contribute
positively to the development of
Nigeria by focussing their CSR
initiatives on sustainable
development which can be in the
areas of quality education, health,
skill acquisition etc. It is pertinent
to note that the regulatory
framework in Nigeria does not
encourage CSR initiatives for
various reasons. Starting from
community members' lack of
trust for the government and
international and national
organisations, which were ignited
as a result of Shells complacence
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1ST EDITION
in human rights abuse in
Ogoniland, down to corruption of
community leaders, and even
corruption among government
officials. Thus even when an
organisation has good intentions
in the communities where it
operates, there is a form of
hostility from the community
members. They already have the
preconception that the presence
of the corporation is to do them
harm. This in turn mars
development, as it might be a
justification on the part of
corporations for not engaging in
CSR related activities. I for one,
am aware that Nigerians have no
trust for no one, and this is
because we have been deceived a
lot. An organisation that truly
wants to engage in CSR related
activities might encounter
hostility from community
members at first, but it can be
proved to have good intentions,
the long term benefits far
outweigh the hostility. An
enabling environment mean
regulations that encourages or
mandates business activities
which minimizes environmental
and or social costs and impacts,
while ensuring economic gains at
the same time.
Despite challenges, International
organisations, particularly when
operating in foreign fields,
continue to engage in CSR
related activities. It is not
common to see an established
firm in a developed country with
no CSR agenda. Why can't we do
same? Nigerian Corporations
both the local and international
ones should strive to engage in
CSR. This will not only be to the
benefit of the community, but
also to growth and success of the
organisation. Left to me, it is the
best form of Public Relations.
Doing Good is good business
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