Responsible Business in Africa:
Chinese Leaders' Perspectives on Performance and Enhancement Opportunities
| This latest paper from AccountAbility in collaboration with the Enterprise Research Institute of the Development Research Centre of the State Council of P.R. China (DRC-ERI), explores the understanding and practice of CSR amongst senior executives of Chinese companies operating in Africa, and in particular the standards on which they draw on for guidance, including legal frameworks, company policies and voluntary standards.  Download report.
|
The research is based on interviews and discussions with senior executives in 22 Chinese enterprises with operations in Africa. These included both large and small enterprises, state-owned and private enterprises. The research is not designed to be evaluative but rather, is designed to engage with, understand and profile the views of these business leaders who are shaping the future course of Chinese business in Africa and elsewhere.
As with all multi-national business, if Chinese companies are to succeed in creating economic opportunities that mutually benefit their own and host economies, they will need to address the social and environmental challenges they face. This means understanding and responding to ESG risks as well as helping to secure sustainable development in the region through both their products and services and their influence on the local environment.
The paper presented at a World Bank roundtable on 'Sustainable Development: Chinese Business in Africa', builds on the frameworks established through a two-year research study by AccountAbility and DRC into the role of voluntary standards in shaping responsible competitiveness strategies in China - 'Advancing Sustainable Competitiveness of China's Transnational Corporations', April 2009. AccountAbility's Responsible Competitiveness work has indicated that responsible approaches to doing business are increasingly recognised as routes to new sources of value creation, driving reputation, managing risks, enhancing productivity and unlocking both product and process innovation.
Download the bi-lingual Executive Summary.
Further resources:
