CSR In China

1221 Words5 Pages

1.4 The development of CSR in China

The Seventeenth National Congress of the Communist Party of China promulgated the edict of “Scientific Concept of Development and Harmonious Society”, which aimed to put people first and maintain comprehensive, coordinated and sustainable development. China has a plan to strategically build a “Socialist Harmonious Society” by the year 2020, encompassing democracy and the rule of law, fairness and justice, integrity and fraternity, vitality, stability and order and harmony between men and nature. In February 2009, China Premier Wen Jiabao quoted Adam Smith’s Theory of Moral Sentiments to emphasize the importance of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). That is, “corporations should not purely strive to maximize …show more content…

In that time the country has shifted away from agriculture to manufacturing as the dominant source of gross domestic product (GDP). Through economic reform, China has built up a socialist market economy, where the market plays a primary role in allocating resources under the government’s macro-policy. China’s GDP has increased from 3,645 (in 100 million RMB) in 1978 to 472,881 (in 100 million RMB) in 2011 while per capita GDP has grown from 381 RMB in 1978 to 35,181 RMB in 2011 (National Bureau of Statistics of China, 2012). It is widely known that China overtook Japan’s position as the world’s second biggest economy in the second quarter of …show more content…

However, it is often doubtful whether society really benefits from economic growth in the long run. Such a high rate of economic growth has caused over-consumption of natural resources which are needed by future generations. Furthermore, wealth distribution can cause social inequity. In the end, benefits from economic growth may not outweigh the social costs. After the scandals mentioned above, one can only cast doubt on how Chinese enterprises view social and moral responsibilities. There is a divergence between what the Chinese government promulgates and what business practices are in reality. An in-depth study of the current CSR activities of Chinese enterprises and how they report them will reflect on the discrepancy between reported behavior and the ideal which the government promulgates, with the aim of shaping China into a major economic superpower. It is through investigating this discrepancy that weaknesses in the system and prompt actions that should be taken may be duly

Open Document