Abdali
As the developer’s of Amman’s new downtown, Abdali Psc. “made it a priority to address the needs of Amman and take into consideration the social and environmental aspects of its development,” according to CEO Jamal Itani. A critical part of the city’s development is the cultivation of Jordanian youth, whom Abdali sees as “the pillars of the future of Jordan.”
With traditional Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives in mind, Abdali has recently launched its full-blown program, known as ‘Ruyatak’, in order to nurture the aspirations of Jordanian youth. Ruyatak aims to empower the underprivileged Jordanian youth. The main focus of Ruyatak is to educate adolescents by providing life skills, encouraging them to play a dynamic role in Jordanian society. “We do believe in the future of our country and hence we believe in the potential of our youth who represent the next generations that will work and live in this country,” Itani explained.
Aside from its significant contributions to the Jordanian youth, Abdali is developing a project that will create more than 15,000 jobs, an initiative which will considerably decrease the migration of talent from Jordan to other surrounding countries.
Abdali maintains a strong belief in CSR and its moral returns. The company is constantly aware of its impact on customers, suppliers, employees, shareholders, communities and other stakeholders, as well as the environment. Itani elaborated, “We believe that there is a strong business case for CSR, in that we benefit in multiple ways by operating with a perspective broader and longer than our own immediate, short-term profits.”
Undeniably, the Abdali project is reaping priceless benefits for Jordan, and with its dedication to such social programs, the company stands to impact Jordan and its youth by opening the door to a better future, while establishing a praiseworthy CSR model for the rest of the region.
ADC
“ADC’s CSR initiatives stand out from others through the meticulous assessment we go through,” explained Imad Fakhoury, CEO of the Aqaba Development Corporation. Each program is fully vetted to avoid redundancy and to increase the benefits for the local community, he said, adding that, “The policy regarding the CSR budget is to take a percentage of the company’s profits and allocate it towards supporting the local community.” ADC established its CSR department in June 2006 with the stated vision of expanding the number of people in the local community who benefit from its programs and to fund development initiatives that will improve the social and economic infrastructure for the community.
Some of the CSR projects sponsored by ADC include 16 scholarships for 10 bachelor’s students, two master’s students and one doctoral student. These scholarships are offered in cooperation with the Jordanian Hashemite Fund for Human Development. ADC also adopted two schools. The company established a Career Knowledge Center at the Abu Ayoub Alansari School in the old town of Aqaba and subsidized tuition fees for students, in addition to presenting gifts for valedictorians in secondary education at the Al Humayma School for girls. Furthermore, ADC created a language lab in the Princess Basma Center for Development to improve English language skills. It conducted a program to promote handicrafts in the old town, in cooperation with the Red Crescent Society, to enhance the role of the woman in society and they supported the student fund program in Aqaba College.
In relation to the Children’s SOS village in Aqaba, ADC provided children with school essentials such as bags, as well as home ovens and large water tanks for domestic use. Finally, the company equipped the health center in the old town of Aqaba with the latest medical equipment to enhance the center’s performance and to provide residents with the highest quality health care possible.
Alfa
Alfa, the Lebanese telecom company, launched its CSR program ‘4life’ early in 2006, and has managed to maintain its continuity despite the political turmoil that Lebanon has witnessed over the last two years. 4life is a novel program that makes use of simple SMS technology to benefit children in communication need.
The initiative allows subscribers to donate money to charities that care for deaf and mute children, autistic children, mentally and physically disabled children, and orphaned children. Alfa ensures further social responsibility by working exclusively with charities that are ‘religion neutral’, a very important factor in a country where religious conflicts are a frequent reality.
“Our CSR program especially targets children in communication need. Children are the future, and the ones in communication need are the most vulnerable,” the company explained. Alfa consistently works with several diverse associations that care for physically and mentally disabled children and orphans. “4life brings to light the role that communication therapy plays in improving the life opportunities of children with communication needs.”
Aside from 4life’s primary aim, which is supporting children in need, the program is an example of social responsibility in an environment that desperately needs more private sector involvement in such humanitarian initiatives. Alfa encourages and enables its subscribers to contribute to worthy causes, and generates public awareness by promoting tolerance.
Speaking to its continued commitment to CSR, Alfa revealed, “Our expanded CSR strategy, due to be implemented this year, will help us communicate and further embed corporate responsibility in our daily business, and will help us to further improve our successful 4life program.” Alfa plans not only to expand the reach of 4life, but also to share its learning through hosting workshops, to internally promote tolerance and a sense of accountability towards the community at large, and to further develop its vision of corporate responsibility and commitment by developing more dedicated programs for children with communication needs.
“Alfa is one of the first organizations to develop such an extensive CSR program in Lebanon,” the company boasted. “Although Alfa works with a relatively small CSR budget, it is achieving great results.”
Bank Audi
According to Bank Audi, there is a clear difference between philanthropy and CSR. The former supports a charitable cause, while the later addresses a social cause. The bank also notes that CSR has become a critical business tool of late. As such, the institution’s CSR budget is currently still within the framework of the communications budget. “Its responsibilities fall under the umbrella of sponsorships, events and donations,” according to an interview with Nadine Abi-Saab, head of communications at the bank. Furthermore, Abi-Saab suggested that since its “CSR initiatives are still at the stage of addressing society’s needs,” they have not “felt the need to perform full-fledged market research specifically for building a CSR activity.”
In terms of its approach to implementing CSR, again the bank has not yet reached the stage where it carefully studies the country, “determining its needs and building strategic plans of long-term CSR activities.” Instead, it keeps an eye on each country of operation so that it may react to developments worthy of CSR investment. For example, the July War of 2006 presented many opportunities for CSR-minded entities. Bank Audi provided assistance through its branches in Syria and Jordan by aiding Lebanese passing through those two countries with emergency banking services, medical and legal assistance and help with organizing hotel and transportation reservations. Within Lebanon itself, the bank launched a Water Supply Operation whereby its staff and volunteers provided drinking water for refugee locations throughout the country. After the war was over, Bank Audi Jordan determined that orphanages in the kingdom could use a helping hand. The bank located an especially needy home and “entirely renovated and refurbished it.”
On another note, Bank Audi has supported tuition needs for less fortunate students at La Sagesse Schools since 2003. It has been an ongoing supporter of the Children’s Cancer Center since 2002 and has organized the Prix Phenix de la Litterature annually since 1996. Other examples of CSR for the bank include the recently revamped Audi Mosaics Museum, yearly sponsorship of key music festivals and a partnership with the Lebanese Film Festival.
Bank Audi also provides CSR benefits for its employees’ needs. The annual Pro-Family Award honors the top five performing employee’s children by giving them university scholarships. Another program, titled Enrich, “was developed with the aim of enriching employees’ knowledge about various topics by putting forward world renowned speakers.”
Finally, our research shows that Bank Audi’s CSR programs address social needs in a couple of ways. The bank reacts to immediate concerns within the societies in which it operates, such as wars and disasters. Additionally, Bank Audi supports cultural development through programs for both the general public and its employees.
Byblos Bank
“We have a key role to play in growing and advancing the societies we serve and that is an intrinsic part of ensuring our own growth,” said Nada Tawil, head of group communications at Byblos Bank. This means that CSR is more than simple philanthropy, she added, as it aims to provide human beings with the basics with which to prosper and thrive.
Byblos Bank takes this ethos to three continents: Europe, Asia and Africa. Tawil was quick to point out that Byblos Bank’s CSR funding is targeted for need so that fewer initiatives are conducted in Europe and the developed GCC and more emphasis is placed on Armenia, Iraq (Kurdistan), Sudan and Syria. However, “Lebanon still occupies the lion’s share of our CSR initiatives as a larger chunk of our business is still concentrated in that country,” Tawil said.
Byblos Bank’s CSR strategy focuses on the areas of community, education, health and environment. Perhaps the most significant CSR investment recently undertaken by the bank was the $4 million rehabilitation of the Fidar Bridge, which was destroyed in the July War of 2006. In another bid to help out on the construction front, the bank contributed $1 million in compensation to the victims of the Geitawi bombing in Beirut.
Other community minded CSR programs aim to preserve Lebanon’s identity and culture. For example, the bank produced a short advertisement, entitled Ana Loubani, to urge Lebanese to embrace their identity. It also sponsored several other films, which celebrate the topics of Lebanese-Armenians, Lebanese villages and archeological sites.
In terms of education, for the past 24 years Bank Byblos has sponsored an event known as Child’s Week. The aim of the program is to support children by helping them realize their artistic talents. The bank also supports the UNICEF Adopt-a-School initiative and the Children’s Cancer Center of Lebanon. From a cultural perspective, Byblos Bank has sponsored the Byblos International Music Festival for eight consecutive years, among other projects. Finally, the bank contributes to environmental programs that discourage littering in the sea and the planting of trees — having planted more than 750 trees in Rechmaya, which was heavily damaged by forest fire in 2007.
Brei
“CSR is part of our business philosophy as we always try to align our values and behavior with the expectations and needs of not just our customers and investors, but also our employees, suppliers, and society as a whole,” explained Karim Bassil, chairman of Bassil Real Estate Investment (BREI), adding, “one of our main objectives is to really make a difference to Lebanon; this is why we look at how we can improve the environment and surrounding areas without developments.”
BREI’s main goal is to develop appealing properties inside Lebanon, which will enhance and revive the area by creating certain dynamics that can generate benefits for the entire community. Bassil discussed his development of Beirut’s popular Gemayze area, and explained how rather than destroying the existing properties, or building in a style discordant with the rest of the neighborhood, he chose instead to respect the existing aesthetic. “I knew I could build, improving the conditions of the area by integrating myself with the environment, not by destroying older houses, not by building towers, but instead keeping trees that have been there for 200-300 years.”
BREI’s awareness of its social responsibility and, hence, its edge over other developers in the country, is its commitment to maintaining the sense of authenticity of areas where it breaks ground, rather than modernizing, using foreign building materials or architectural styles that do not agree with the existing construction.
BREI respects the nature and culture and history of each place it develops, giving attention to detail, instilling beauty as well as practicality, and promising, above all, to keep the interests of the community at the core of each project. “As a developer of culturally successful projects,” Bassil describes, “I develop projects that are integrated into the surroundings both culturally and environmentally.”
As primary long-term goal, BREI believes that it is its responsibility to contribute to the improvement of society and the well-being of future generations. “Other developers may squeeze overheads, but they do that at the cost of so many other things that BREI will not compromise.” Bassil concluded by saying that BREI, a company “for those that want more than an investment, more than just bricks and mortar,” is hopeful that its unique social-consciousness will “inspire others to follow in its footsteps.”
Banque Libano-Française
“We participate in CSR because we believe that organizations should be looking for more than profit. They should assume their responsibility vis-à-vis the society in which they operate,” said Tania Nacouz, head of communications at Banque Libano-Francaise. What differentiates companies from each other is their caring for various stakeholders, including the society in which it operates, she added. The bank undertakes CSR on three different levels including customers, employees and community. While the bank works hard to develop their employees, it is on the community level that their generosity shines.
Banque Libano-Française has supported many important festivals, such as Al Bustan Festival, the Byblos Festival and the Festival of Tyre. More significantly, the bank has been a sponsor of the Baalbeck Festival since 1969 and was a founding member of the Lebanese Association for the Development of Private Funding for Culture. Other community related CSR projects have seen Banque Libano-Française join hands with the Tobacco Free Initiative, an NGO that promotes smoke-free youth, and Help Lebanon, an NGO that rehabilitates historic buildings. The bank works with the MIT Arab Business Plan Competition to promote young Arab entrepreneurs and has been the main partner of Liban Jazz since its inception in 2004. It has also been the main partner of the Moawad Museum since 2005, in addition to various other sponsorships and donations.
Banque Libano-Française’s Communications Department is responsible for handling the bank’s CSR budget, which is in the range of hundreds of thousands of dollars each year. As for the bank’s vision of CSR in the future, it would like to see “an increase in multi-stakeholder partnerships in the region, so that various actors from civil society, the public and private sector team up to achieve a common social goal,” according to Nacouz. The bank would also like to see the government establish tax exemptions on CSR activities, to provide the private sector with more of an impetus to engage in social responsibility.
Imperial Palace Hotel
Although the Imperial Palace Hotel, one of Amman’s most famous and prestigious four-star hotels, has been undergoing a complete renovation, its management and staff have still managed to dedicate time and resources to CSR. According to General Manager Farah Abu Mattar, “The key to strong CSR statements is not only to lead other corporations by example, but to make clear and substantial benefits in a society in need.”
Over the past few years, Imperial Palace has begun tapping into a wider CSR concept by welcoming special needs individuals into the Imperial Palace family. As Abu Mattar explained, “We believe that special needs individuals are just as capable of performing their tasks as those of us without special needs.” The hotel aims to generate and enrich the personal and professional experiences of all of its employees, regardless of their abilities or disabilities.
The hotel’s management gives great attention to special needs individuals, holding various activities and events, working to ease their habilitation and employment at Imperial Palace, and offering different social initiatives aimed at allowing them to reaffirm their roles as capable and active employees.
As another part of their CSR initiatives for those with special needs, Imperial Palace cooperates with the Amman Center for Special Education in an activity called “Beyond Boundaries.” As outlined by Abu Mattar, the program offers special needs individuals an opportunity “to engage in every day life activities, express themselves and their hopes, and contribute to society in their own way.” Imperial Palace pursues this program with hopes that it will challenge widespread norms about disabled people, and break the boundaries which prevent people with special needs from being engaged in all walks of life.
“We believe in the positive role people with special needs can play in society; they have the ability to contribute if given the opportunity to do so, and we, at Imperial Palace Hotel, are giving them this opportunity to demonstrate their capabilities,” Abu Mattar said. As for future CSR initiatives, the hotel has already allocated a portion of its revenues, and is developing a structure for more long-term social projects aimed at inspiring “a culture where special needs individuals are able to practice more fulfilling professions.”
Cisco Systems
Cisco Systems, a chief IP-based networking technologies company, measures its success by how it directly impacts the communities in which it operates, according to George Akiki, director of corporate affairs for the Middle East and Africa. Cisco distinguishes itself by its many worldwide CSR initiatives, ranging from education and networking academies to socio-economic development programs. “Our engagements are long-term in nature, as we believe that in order to achieve real impact, we need to be serious about our commitments and reach sustainability before we disengage,” Akiki elaborated.
Cisco’s CSR practices are tightly integrated into its business culture, and fall into four key areas: employee treatment, environmental impact, investments in global communities and corporate governance practices. However, one of the company’s most notable CSR operations is its involvement with Partnership for Lebanon, which provided critically needed resources to assist the reconstruction efforts after the 2006 War. “We are proud to be involved in a leading-edge socio-economic program that is setting new grounds in the field of CSR,” Akiki said, adding that Cisco strives “to use our experience to make the world a better place to live in.”
Addressing the difference between philanthropy and CSR, Akiki explained that, “Philanthropy is usually used as a term when mere donations are involved. CSR encompasses responsible business practices and social investments to create long-term value and sustainability for the company’s business and global communities.”
He went on to discuss how “the existence of ‘enlightened’ leadership in governments dictates the successful outcome of CSR in that country,” perhaps alluding to the potential challenges to CSR that business face in Lebanon. Akiki pointed out that, “as a private sector company that is focused on execution, we don’t see things moving at our preferred pace.” However, Akiki remains optimistic, adding, “we hope that the private sector will contribute some of its applicable best practices in the arena to improve things.”
Intel
As general manager of Intel Middle East, Khaled Elamrawi explained that for Intel, CSR is “part of our values, part of our contribution, part of giving back to the community, to the people we work with.” He added that, “We believe it is important to focus our CSR efforts into the areas which are beneficial to our business in the long run.” As global leaders in PC technology development and production, Intel has focused its CSR efforts on the realm of education, thereby advancing knowledge and awareness, not only in computers, but also in a wide-range of necessary life skills.
“We believe education is key for us to develop our market in the long term,” Elamrawi said, outlining Intel’s impressive worldwide computer education programs. Intel Teach and Intel Learn concentrate on developing computer skills for both teachers and students in the classroom, promoting an educational process that is more interactive, more productive and efficient, and more fun.
Intel Science and Engineering Fair is the world’s largest international science fair, and provides extra-curricular stimulation for young students, while encouraging problem solving, research skills, creativity, and environmental awareness. “The more educated the competition is, the faster the market grows. Our business in the long term depends on the quality of the education in our specific country or specific market,” Elamrawi said.
Intel’s formula for successful CSR gets right to the point: effective initiatives that have long-term benefits for both the company and the community. Education is an advantageous route for Intel to follow, as Elamrawi explained, because it is at the root of “the PC growth and the economic growth of a country.” This also helps Intel: the higher the GDP, the higher the PC penetration, the more businesses will use PCs.
Though education remains a primary focus for the company, Intel has other CSR initiatives involving Wi-max technology, which it believes has the potential to significantly close the gap between the emerging world and the developed world in terms of broadband penetration. These programs serve as further examples of how Intel’s CSR consistently manages to fuse its own benefits with the benefit of the community at large, while at the same time investing in the long-term development of both the company and the public sector.
Coca-Cola
At Coca-Cola, “the philosophy of the company is: we have to give back to our community,” explained Amer Ahmad, marketing and communications manager of the internationally renowned corporation. He continued by adding that, “we are a 120 year old company. We are very focused on CSR worldwide. We have spent more than $76 million on CSR across the globe least year alone.”
Ahmad outlined the various socially responsible programs that Coca-Cola sponsors in the region. In Palestine, the primary focus is on education initiatives. The company donates all sorts of school supplies for underprivileged families, and computers to disadvantaged schools. Coca-Cola even sponsors top Palestinian students to receive their MBAs.
In Jordan, the company has similar programs. For example, Ahmed said, Coca-Cola “set up computer labs in about 28 schools last year, and about 20 schools the year before last.” Also in Jordan, Ahmad recounted, Coca-Cola sponsored 200 families, fulfilling “all of their needs in terms of food, rice, sugar, etc.”
In Lebanon, Coca-Cola cooperated with the UNDP and the Ministry of Agriculture to plant 3,000 trees. Another initiative in Lebanon involves diverting water to farmers and other communities who will benefit from it. A separate initiative in Lebanon concerning water is the ‘Water for Life’ initiative, a collaborative effort with the UNDP and various NGOs.
Ahmad illustrated Coca-Cola’s CSR agenda in Syria: “We have been operating in Syria for the last two years and we are focusing on the water project at the moment. We are also working with the local governments and the First Lady to develop certain youth initiatives.”
As Coca-Cola has certainly been deriving huge profit from the region, it is no surprise that the company is so intent on sharing some of those profits with the people who have enabled its success.
“Mainly, we want the community to benefit from our presence in the country. We want to create job opportunities, or give back to the community in a very meaningful way,” Ahmad said, continuing that, “CSR is not about getting a couple of newspaper clippings. At Coca-Cola, we want everybody to benefit from our CSR, and we want to bring it to another level by expanding our programs every year, developing sustainable programs, and including everyone in the company.”
HSBC
“Civil society must work closely with the corporate world as they need each other to best serve the needs of the local community,” proposed Leila Sidani, HSBC Lebanon communications manager. The corporate world holds up half of the bargain and that usually means money. In the case of HSBC, the local CSR budget is determined as a percentage of profits. In 2007 that spending was expanded in coordination with the bank’s parent, which resulted in a budget of $262,000. Once the budget has been set, the bank conducts market research to determine where the money would be best invested and then the allocations begin.
One established CSR campaign run by HSBC is the Community Middle East Foundation, which was established in 1996 to fund educational, environmental and community projects across the region. A sub-set of the $2 million foundation is the global five-year program Future First. The program was established in 2007 and has the express goal of helping street children and orphans. HSBC will collaborate with local charitable organizations to make a positive difference in the lives of these less fortunate children.
Another five-year CSR program is the HSBC Climate Partnership. This $100 million partnership pairs the bank with four environmental charities including The Climate Group, Earthwatch Institute, Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (STRI) and the WWF. The partnership’s goal is to “combat the threat of climate change by inspiring action by individuals, businesses and governments worldwide,” said Sidani. HSBC has also followed up their words with action by becoming the first bank in the world to go carbon neutral.
On a local note, HSBC provides scholarships to AUB and LAU students. Participants in the program do an internship at the bank and then have priority for employment after graduation. Another education relevant CSR initiative was the joint financing, along with the British Education Trust, of an MBA program for a Lebanese student who spent a year doing a master’s program in the United Kingdom. One final education related CSR projected involved the NGO Off-Screen, which takes two students and a teacher from the region on a 14-day educational journey across the UK.
Finally, HSBC is also involved in environmental friendly CSR such as support for the wetlands of Ammiq, Lebanon, which are home to many rare birds and reptiles. The bank also hosted a “house warming” campaign where the bank offered a solar heating system with an approved home loan. The benefit of the program is two-fold: not only is it environmentally friendly, but it also helps reduce energy bills. In conclusion, HSBC has a broad-spectrum approach to its CSR programs. The bank is active in everything from needy youth around the world, to education and the environment.
DHL
“DHL has always been the type of company that is concerned about the community and has always given a hand whenever it was needed,” said John Chedid, country manager of DHL Lebanon. The global shipping giant does not have a local CSR budget, so program funds come out of the advertising, travel or entertainment budget. “We have to be careful because we don’t have a lot of money to involve in CSR, so we have to be sure it is the right cause,” Chedid explained.
In terms of projects, the company planted 100 cedar trees (one tree for each employee) in conjunction with the Cedars Forever Project in 2002. The same year it began providing free international shipping to the Children’s Cancer Center and the following year they started providing free shipping for Auxilia and Anta Akhi.
In 2004, DHL contributed $10,000 to the Children’s Cancer Center and two years later solicited $214,000 in contributions to use in supporting those affected by the July 2006 War. Of those funds, $75,000 was used to provide food, medicine, clothing and supplies to 2,200 refugees at a monastery in Beit Mery, while $120,000 went towards schoolbooks for 3,800 students in South Lebanon after the war. Food was also provided to refugees in Sanaya Park during the fighting.
“The community work we have carried out has created pride in the company’s employees. They know that DHL has helped out when called upon. In fact, many of the causes we adopt come to us through our employees,” said Chedid. He added that it is not bad that we live in a world where companies believe they need a CSR policy. As long as the programs are planned well, the society should benefit. “We are simply a group of individuals under two flags, one red and green and the other yellow and red, doing what they think is right,” he concluded.
Saraya Holdings
“CSR builds value for a business and all its stakeholders,” said Ali Kolaghassi, CEO of Saraya Holdings. “We believe that a business cannot operate within a community — be it global or local — without taking into account its specific needs and the impact of business on these communities and the world at large.” Saraya applies this approach to CSR by focusing on three main areas: education, the environment and community outreach. Corporate activities include employees distributing food in low-income neighborhoods and participating in local blood donation programs. The company works hard to ensure that good corporate governance systems are in place.
Other Saraya CSR programs include a school adoption program in Aqaba, Jordan. This program aims to enrich learning environments and enhance opportunities for students. Financial support, business and technical know-how are provided as well. The company also sponsors Jordanian students in the field of hotel management. These scholarship programs take students that graduate from high schools, educate them on Saraya’s account and then bring them back as Saraya employees, said Kolaghassi. “We also adopted a school, renovated it and then we hired a professional agency to give courses for teachers and parents,” he added.
The environment also plays into Saraya’s CSR policy. When the company started a development in Aqaba, many palm trees had to be removed. As part of its green approach, the company meticulously counted every tree and replanted those 2,000 palm trees on the site. “These things are seen very positively. Ultimately, we feel that if we spend five percent from our project, it will pay back very positively,” said Kolaghassi. “We want to be a corporate citizen. We want to donate money. We want the local residents of any community we work in to feel that this giant that comes in is not just going to take away their beach, but will offer something in return,” he concluded.
Lebanese Canadian Bank
The Lebanese Canadian Bank (LCB) boasts an extraordinarily long list of CSR initiatives. Having been forced to work around the unpredictable political climate of Lebanon, the bank has discovered that the best way to make the most of circumstances it cannot control is to plan its initiatives year by year, remaining flexible and ready to adapt to any unforeseen change.
“Every year we have something different; we open new opportunities, we make new plans because in Lebanon, you cannot predict what is going to happen. Year after year we base our CSR on the issues and concern of the Lebanese people and environment. We consistently take into consideration everything that’s around us, and out of that, make new strategies, new programs,” explained Elie Azar, Corporate Communications Manager at LCB.
The bank has been involved with various CSR programs covering a broad spectrum of regional issues and concerns, including road safety, prevention of drug use, and providing Christmas gifts to underprivileged families. LCB has invested in several health initiatives, financing a dental clinic and an AIDS treatment facility, providing medications for patients with AIDS who need assistance, and supporting the rehabilitation of mentally disabled young adults.
Additionally, LCB has worked in collaboration with the US, Canadian, and Emirati embassies, along with the UN for the demining of cluster bombs in southern Lebanon. The bank also works closely with the Ministry of the Interior to plant trees all across Lebanon and has worked with UNDP to establish libraries equipped with computers in the Chouf. Also with UNDP — as well as IMF, IFC, and the World Bank — LCB coordinated the Middle East and North Africa Development Forum (MDF5), a big event dedicated to empowering civil society and expanding the scope of economic and social policy issues in the MENA region.
Perhaps the most important CSR initiatives for the Lebanese Canadian Bank are those involving youth. “We want to be a youth-savvy bank. We believe that the youth are the future of Lebanon, and also our future clients. Out of our annual CSR budget, which is more than 30-40 % of our global communications budget, we want to dedicate 40-50 % to youth initiatives,” Azar pointed out. “We are part of an industry; we want to invest in initiatives that promote the future of our business.”
Procter & Gamble
For Procter & Gamble (P&G), CSR is not regarded as simply a bothersome company obligation, or a nice supplement to all the other things the company already does; it is not pursued for mere PR purposes, or simply because CSR appears to be a recent trend amongst other companies in the region. At P&G, CSR is understood as a way of life. “It is perfectly integrated into the day-to-day business, and that is exactly our edge,” explained Ramez Farag, P&G’s Corporate Communication and Reputation Manager. “For us, CSR is not something we go out of our way to do, we see it as a tool for business growth. We see the full scope, the full picture of CSR.”
P&G is company that has existed for 170 years, operating in 140 countries worldwide. “One of the reasons we’ve been around for so long,” Farag said, “is because we are not simply after profits. This company truly believes in doing the right thing, and has always seen its mission not as simply selling products, but as selling products that improve the lives of consumers.”
A key aspect of the P&G mission is the concept of “improving the lives of the world’s consumers, now and for years to come.” This statement speaks volumes about P&G’s approach to business, and thus, its attitude toward corporate social responsibility: they’re in it for the long run. The company focuses not on the philanthropic course of giving back to the community, but instead on sustainable initiatives, genuine engagement, and a commitment beyond financial assistance.
Procter & Gamble’s CSR strategy centers on improving lives through five different aspects: products, production, responsibility, employees, and partnerships. The company, most noted for its many distinguished products, has developed brands such as PUR to deliver clean and safe drinking water to people in developing areas, and compact laundry detergents which save consumers’ money and deliver enormous environmental benefits.
P&G engages in various initiatives involving children’s education, healthcare, and extracurricular activities. With the world-unique Mokattam Recycling School project in Egypt, P&G developed an informal educational program for underprivileged children that focused on recycling, while respecting their cultural traditions of garbage collecting.
Internally, P&G focuses a great deal of attention on the human resources of the company, as its employees remain at the core of P&G’s success. Externally, the company upholds the highest ethical standards when dealing with corporate partners, civil society organizations, NGOs and its broader community.
The Procter & Gamble approach to CSR sets the benchmark for quality, creativity, innovation, and scope. Farag summed it up when he said, “We insist on delivering meaningful change by our CSR. It makes our job even harder, but we insist on doing that and we succeed in doing that.”
Mcdonald’s
“There are many things to be done when it comes to CSR,” said Rashwan Miknas, CEO of McDonald’s Lebanon. This should begin to explain why McDonald’s contributes to CSR in Lebanon on several levels. On one level, the company has been a major sponsor for the Children’s Cancer Center since 1998 and Miknas believes this support will yield future returns. “This has long-term returns, not for McDonald’s International, but for the country of Lebanon,” he said.
On another level, the restaurant chain also dedicates money to the cause of youth and sports. The intended goal is to combat child labor and this is done by sponsoring a football team of boys between the ages of 9 and 15, who go on to participate in the Norway Cup. This is the fourth largest sporting event in the world and is dedicated solely to children under the age of 16. Held every year in Norway, over 1,500 teams participate, representing around 140 countries. Getting disadvantaged children involved in sports helps them avoid drugs and violence on the street, Miknas explained.
McDonald’s Lebanon champions other social causes as well. One of the biggest is getting more women into the labor force. The chain already has two female branch managers in the country and they are constantly looking to add more. The advancement of women in the workforce is an important aspect of any society, according to Miknas. “I worked in Dubai before coming to Lebanon and over there the government asked company leaders to train women in a special program. This promotes a sense of responsibility for both the company and the women. It does a lot to prepare women for professional life,” he said. Miknas concluded that it would be good to have similar programs in Lebanon, saying that he would like to “lobby for proper laws to protect the rights of women and children.”
Schneider Electric
The French conglomerate has CSR projects throughout the 106 countries of its operations, but the Eastern Mediterranean division, headquartered in Beirut, specifically works with IECD, an NGO that is active in all of SE’s Eastern Med countries: Cyprus, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria. “Locally, each subsidiary selects what is possible to do to help their society,” said Richard Francis, Schneider Electric business development manager at the Eastern Med office.
In order to give a sense of ownership over the CSR to its employees, Schneider has instituted a system whereby the company will match every employee’s contribution.
In the Eastern Med office, the desire is to each year choose one country for one project. For example, in 2003 the company set up a computer laboratory equipped with computers and printers at the Actel Technical Institute in Koura, Lebanon. The following year, it purchased a Braille printer and offered staff training at the Association for the Blind in Homs, Syria. In 2006, it gathered underprivileged teenagers to engage in sports, in addition to career and vocational guidance at the Arcenciel Rainbow Club in Jordan. Finally, last year Schneider Electric started the Seeds of Hope program in Lebanon, which paid tuition for needy students at the Foyer de la Providence Technical Institute in Saida. The same program also paid for the equipping of six technical laboratories, in addition to training staff at those schools specializing in the study of electricity, electronics and electro-mechanics.
Francis added that the educational sector in Lebanon is very important to Schneider Electric: “We will do what we can for the educational sector in Lebanon as it is very important for the country.”
