Global Compact International Yearbook 2013
63
CSR in Africa
Agenda
CSR
in South Africa
National Concept of CSR
In light of South Africa’s history, is there a specific South African view
on corporate social responsibility (CSR)?
Prof. Hamann:
The historical context has provided a paradox
regarding CSR in South Africa. On the one hand, corpora-
tions are implicated in the design of the apartheid economy
and migrant labor system, specifically, as well as associated
human rights abuses. As argued by the Truth and Reconcili-
ation Commission, “grand apartheid was not an Afrikaner
state invention, but was created by the mines” (paraphrased).
This historical legacy still lingers in the pervasive distrust
between big (white) business and the post-1994 government.
For those distrustful of business, CSR will remain a fig leaf.
On the other hand, large companies recognized – at least
in the 1970s – that the increasingly severe policies of the
apartheid government were leading to social unrest that would
have negative consequences for business. As a prominent
example, Anglo American and others established in 1978
(
after the Soweto riots) the Urban Foundation, which played
an important role in building schools and houses in Soweto
and elsewhere, and also in advocating policy changes (less
strict pass laws). The Urban Foundation is a precursor to the
National Business Initiative.
The apartheid legacy obviously creates particular social chal-
lenges, which have become priorities for companies’ corporate
social investment (CSI) programs. These investments focus on
education, health, and small enterprise development. Unfortu-
nately, many companies still think that CSR is primarily about
CSI. My criticism is that companies focus on giving away a
small proportion of their profits without really understanding
and responding to the social implications of their core business
practices. I hardly use the term CSR anymore, partly due to
this confusion. We rather emphasize the need to understand
the broader social-ecological context in companies’ strategy
design and implementation.
Professor Ralph Hamann is Research Director for the Graduate School of Business at the
University of Cape Town. His areas of expertise include Corporate Citizenship and Corporate
Social Responsibility. In 2006 he was involved as a researcher at the UN Global Compact
Learning Forum, which took place in Ghana. For the UN Global Compact International
Yearbook, Hamann highlights the “paradox for CSR in South Africa” and beyond.
Inside ...
aFrica