Corporate social responsibility in Kenya: Blessing, curse or necessary evil?

Abstract

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is a fuzzy concept, but is critical in many contexts and situations. In Kenya, CSR is viewed by organizations as a necessary but voluntary commitment. More succinctly, a long-term commitment to sustainable outcomes motivates organizations to consider social, economic, legal and environmental rights. Despite the nobility of CSR, organizations and wider society variously consider it either a blessing, a curse or a ‘necessary evil’. In challenging and turbulent times, these perspectives become even more significant, since while the pursuit of CSR is considered critical for sustainability, competing needs make it unlikely to be considered a priority. In a Kenyan context, we have deliberately dubbed such an era as the ‘adolescence age’, which relates to a relatively early and fragile period in a country’s history. Accordingly, Kenyan organizations are undergoing difficult times, and the resources necessary for CSR are diminished or non-existent. Stakeholder expectations are not commensurate with reality, and societal expectations are rising. In the chapter, we start by considering CSR and its enduring benefits in a Kenyan context. We then examine the social, economic, legal, environmental and politicalchallenges currently faced by corporate organizations who are seeking to pursue CSR in Kenya. Next, we examine the strategies being used by Governments, International Organizations and NGOs to lessen the burden of these challenges. Finally, we discuss how SMEs are attempting to deal with these challenges, and we present some conclusions and implications for theory and research.