Study Reveals Dominican Republic is Lagging Behind in Corporate Social Responsibility

The research, released by the non-governmental organization Alianza, shed light on the evolution and state of social initiatives undertaken by Dominican corporations.

The research also found that 83% of the companies studied take their own decisions in the areas of social intervention, which reduces their involvement to offering proposals or soliciting petitions…

According to a report released on Wednesday by the Alianza NGO, the Dominican Republic is lagging behind in the implementation of its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) policies, implying disadvantages in trade material and access to financing as compared to the rest of the countries in the region.

The Alianza research, Corporate Social Responsibility in the Dominican Republic, studied sample cases from 71 companies in nine provinces and the capital Santo Domingo. Results showed that 25% of the companies reviewed have, to the high degree, adopted CSR norms and another 28% are headed in that direction. This implies better practices and social interventions related to development programs. Nevertheless, while slightly more than 50% of these companies practice social intervention, CSR norms are still not part of the national agenda.

Despite the fact that the companies studied had been carrying out these activities and interventions for the past 10 years, domestically and abroad, their practices generally still do not correspond to the concepts, tools and work methodologies of the CSR, but rather undertake these measures with a philanthropic and altruistic purpose.

The report states that 38% of the companies surveyed had designated one person or a specific office to manage the social interventions, another 35% of companies include personnel in decision-making and 45% do reports periodically about the social activities they´ve carried out.

The research also found that 83% of the companies studied take their own decisions in the areas of social intervention, which reduces their involvement to offering proposals or soliciting petitions, indicating advances are being made in understanding CSR as a strategy to improve competitiveness.

An outstanding piece of information revealed that in 80% of the cases, companies have plans to broaden their social projects according to the national development agenda. This is encouraging especially if when taken with the fact that the majority of these places are considering alliances with others involved in development, especially non-profit organizations with will contribute to the creation of social capital. This could signify a boost of great magnitude due to the fact that 69% of the companies carry out their social activities together with third parties, according to the study.

The companies studied reported some 404 initiatives defined as social interventions over a period of 12 months; of these, 57% were made up of external activities as opposed to 43% internal social initiatives. The main areas of external intervention are the following, in order of frequency: education, health, development, community development, family income and environment.

The companies studied reported some 404 initiatives defined as social interventions over a period of 12 months; of these, 57% were made up of external activities as opposed to 43% internal social initiatives.

Competitiveness and Development

The study, released at a meeting attended by a large group of businesspeople, public servants and representatives from Civil Society, established that the CSR has become a wide-reaching world movement due to evidence that supports its strategy for increasing competitiveness and its use as a tool for sustainable development. According to the experiences compiled, nearly all countries (developed or not) are paying attention to and promoting these practices.

Along these same lines, it is understood that CSR will become an important tendency in all sectors and for all companies with international operations, markets and chains. As such, it was concluded that the Dominican Republic is among the most advanced in Latin America in terms of adopting CSR strategies.

Around 45% of the companies, according to the research data, maintain reports about their social initiatives, albeit exclusively internal, which means that public knowledge about the corporate social activities is practically nil among the Dominican populace. In addition, the companies have not incorporated into a culture of communication about themselves. This helps explain why only 30% of the companies surveyed carry out their own social evaluations.

“Even with so many public and private institutions working with CSR issues, a government that encourages a state policy of competitiveness and with the numbers of companies with trained human resources people that intervene socially, the country still does not have an ample program to promote CSR and assist businesses in their effort to adopt these beneficial practices,” reads the report done under the auspices of the W.K.Kellogg Foundation with support from the National Competitiveness Council and the FACONDO Foundation.

Among other conclusions, the report also highlights the fact that in the absence of comprehensive CSR programs and the country´s national scope, the DR is disconnected from advances which, in this field, are being registered to a large extent in countries around the world and especially in the region.

Contact:

Alfonso Torres
Information Officer
NGO Alianza
Tel. (809) 221-9192
Fax. (809) 221-0004
Email: atorres@alianzaong.org.do