As vehicle for economic development

By Omodele Adigun

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) can be described as a potent tool for economic development in Nigeria since governments at all levels cannot single handed provide every need of the populace.

No wonder, experts reason that the development of the economy , therefore, should be shouldered, in a sort of tripartite arrangement, by the government, the citizenry, and corporate entities in the country.

For instance, Godwin Emefiele, the governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), once raised the alarm that “the Federal Government cannot do it alone. The support of the private sector is needed , and very urgent indeed !”.

Many members of the organized private sector have actually responded to this clarion call, to further drive direct foreign investment; to help rejig the economy, while some are still in the process of doing so.

Those that have signified to be counted worthy are actually at home with Williams Shakespeare’s advice in one of its works , The Merchant of Venice, that: “…it is a twice blest: it blesseth him that gives and him that takes” . Niall Fitzerald, a former global  CEO of Unilever, inspired by this time-tested truth, declares that “Corporate Social Responsibility is a hard-edged business decision. Not because it is a nice thing to do or because people are forcing us to do it, (but) because it is good for our business”.

Among those that stand tall in this Hall of Fame are the entities which, in this special publication, showcase the array of CSR projects they have executed so far with a view to building abetter Nigeria.