Abstract
This paper empirically examines a corporate community involvement (CCI) initiative in Bangladesh. Drawing on a conceptual framework of 'collaborative betterment' and 'collaborative empowerment' and by using focus group discussions and interviews, it assesses the initiative to examine the extent to which it meets expectations of the community where it operates. Some of the key findings of the paper include: (i) although the initiative provides vital healthcare services to some of the most vulnerable and desperately poor communities, the level of actual engagement of the local people - the main stakeholders - has been marginal; (ii) when the principles of collaborative betterment and empowerment are considered, it can be concluded that the initiative struggles even as a 'betterment' process; and (iii) notwithstanding the rhetoric and high-blown statements, corporate role in terms of practical efforts in the field has been mostly superficial and limited.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 41-51 |
| Number of pages | 11 |
| Journal | Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management |
| Volume | 21 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| Early online date | 26 Sep 2012 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Jan 2014 |
Bibliographical note
This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: Sharmin, S., Khan, N. A., & Belal, A. R. (2014). Corporate community involvement in Bangladesh: an empirical study. Corporate social responsibility and environmental management, 21(1), 41-51, which has been published in final form at http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/csr.1304. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance With Wiley Terms and Conditions for self-archiving.Keywords
- corporate social responsibility
- Bangladesh
- stakeholder engagement
- collaborative betterment and empowerment
- corporate community involvement