© Informa Middle East. All rights reserved

Study RevealS the GeneRal ConSenSuS about CSR in WeSt afRiCa

Conducted by Informa Middle East & Africa, the results of a survey taken by professionals from some of Africa’s most renowned organisations have been released highlighting key trends and challenges for social corporate responsibility in the region.

The survey included 11 questions and was designed to elaborate on CSR, how engaged companies are in CSR initiatives, where it is considered a valuable tool to create shared value to the local community.

The results showed that the challenges that most respondents were facing in implementing CSR initiatives include the focus of organisations on other priorities, the difficulties of measuring the return on investment of the initiatives, the lack of collaboration with NGO’s and social enterprises, and the struggle of building a business case for the initiatives.

There is a strong demand for organisations in Nigeria and West Africa to establish greater clarity and ethical business practices in order to drive social and economic development and to encourage international investment. Yet, CSR and sustainability are under developed functions within the region.

Some of the top areas that respondents indicated were in critical need of development in the region are education, entrepreneurship, and healthcare. Meanwhile, environmental sustainability and community development received less votes in terms of development needs.

PleaSe indiCate youR level of aGReement oR diSaGReement foR eaCh of the folloWinG ChallenGeS / baRRieRS in imPlementinG SuStainability and CSR at youR oRGaniSation

120

100

80

60

40

20

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busi

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CSR

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toeff

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ely

mea

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Build

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ness

cas

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r you

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Agree

Strongly Agree

Disagree

Strongly Disagree

#CSRwestafrica

8 – 9 October 2014Four Points by Sheraton | Lagos | Nigeria

© Informa Middle East. All rights reserved

The overall results of the survey showed a high level of awareness among local professionals about the concept. While 90% of the respondents confirmed that their organisations are actively engaged in CSR initiatives, only 5% disagreed that sustainability drives customer acquisition and loyalty. In the meantime, 95% believe that sustainability performance is important for the overall success of the organisation and 81% said that their executive board were involved in CSR initiatives. If anything, these responses reflect a strong desire to extend CSR practices across the region.

One of the objectives of CSR West Africa Summit 2014 is changing the landscape of sustainability throughout West Africa and examining its impact on social and economic development. The content of the summit will focus on themes like defining CSR and sustainability, assessing the need for more political direction for CSR in the region, building the business case for sustainability and aligning CSR with long-term business objectives, and driving employment by social investment.

The summit, which will take place on October 8 and 9 at the Four Points by Sheraton at Lagos, will bring together government officials, policy makers, corporates, NGO’s, regulators and social enterprises to address the different issues relevant to CSR in West Africa.

WhiCh of the folloWinG aRe toP 3 aReaS that aRe CRitiCal foR SuStainable develoPment in WeSt afRiCa?

90.0%

80.0%

70.0%

60.0%

50.0%

40.0%

30.0%

20.0%

10.0%

0.0%

Educ

atio

n

Yout

h

Empl

oym

ent

Entr

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ship

Envi

ronm

enta

lSu

stai

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mun

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#CSRwestafricawww.csr-westafrica.com