Regional Review: Africa

In Africa, the policies and programs of corporate social responsibility (CSR) are systematically emerging as “an organizational culture” in the academic and professional circles. The purpose of this chapter is to critically discuss the emerging trends, perspectives, and debates on CSR in Africa, using a desk research technique, which is a qualitative research method and an interpretivist research paradigm. Specifically, the authors reviewed scholarly works, reports, website information, and brochures in order to unveil trends of CSR in Africa. The sourced data were systematically analyzed using critical review of literature (CLR). Three findings emerged from the critical review of literature. Firstly, the definitions of CSR in Africa are largely shaped by the traditional understanding of charity-giving, financial system, political system especially governance gap, cultural system and education, and labor system. Secondly, the CRS policies and programs of selected companies in Africa are driven by the philanthropic perspective, but there is a growing strategic view among companies. Thirdly, civil society organizations played far-reaching roles creating awareness and advancement on CSR through education/sensitization, advocacy, and engagement with stakeholders for better compliance and disclosure. In contextualizing CSR in Africa, it could be stated that understanding of CSR is largely a moral duty that businesses as corporate citizens owe the host communities. The motives for undertaking CSR in Africa are social integration/empowerment, economic performances, and environmental compliance. The insightful findings from this chapter need to be strengthened with more rigorous empirical investigation. The chapter concludes with implications and suggestions for further research.