Corporate Social Responsibility in Private Mining Companies

Corporate Social Responsibility is the commitment of business to contribute to sustainable economic development ¿ working with employees, their families, the local community and society at large to improve the quality of life, in ways that are both good for business and good for development(World Bank). The concept of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is alien in many developing countries and remains so in Zambia even today. CSR has not been fully integrated as part of the corporate agenda of many corporations in Zambia especially the post 1991 privatised mining companies. Presently there is no clear legislative framework governing CSR in Zambia. There are no tangible guidelines for firms on how to implement CSR in the country. There remains little consensus on the meaning of the term, or indeed on its usefulness, and it is not widely employed.