Corporate social responsibility and developing countries

The criticism that the mainstream corporate social responsibility (CSR) agenda was largely driven by the concerns and priorities of western countries and therefore tends to be insensitive to local priorities as well as inadvertently harm prospects for sustainable livelihood in developing countries set the tone for the emergence of a South-centred CSR agenda. The efforts to broaden the scope and content of mainstream CSR discourse and practice has meant three principal themes have come to dominate the emerging South-centred critical CSR agenda. The emergence of this critical perspective to CSR has not only contributed to the maturation of contemporary CSR agenda but has also generated rich insights with regard to the strengths and limitations of CSR practices within developing countries. However, the failure to critically engage with the role of government, adopt a bottom-up approach to CSR analysis and avoid a piecemeal research focus has meant the emerging Southern perspective to CSR is yet to achieve its full potential. This article suggests ways to address these shortcomings and contributes to the strengthening of the emerging critical CSR research agenda in Africa.