Abstract
Abstrakt
Oppgaven utforsker forståelsen av bedriftenes samfunnsansvar (CSR) i Saudi Arabia og sammenligner denne forståelsen med den internasjonale diskursen av samme felt. For å definere den internasjonale diskursen av CSR bruker forfatteren fire internasjonale standarder, flere teorier, samt noen sentrale karakteristika i mange definisjoner av CSR.
For å samle nok informasjon om CSR i Saudi Arabia, ble et feltarbeid i landet ansett som nødvendig. Under dette feltarbeidet diskuterte forfatteren feltet med flere sentrale aktører innen den offentlige og den private sektor. Blant informantene finnes Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority, Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Saudi Aramco og to Jotun selskap som har sitt virke i Saudi Arabia.
Hovedfunnene i prosjektet tilsier at CSR i Saudi Arabia hovedsakelig blir forstått som utvikling av den nasjonale humane og sosiale kapitalen. Menneskerettigheter, arbeiderrettigheter og anti-korrupsjon er, i motsetning til den internasjonale diskursen, ikke sentrale elementer innenfor CSR.
Dette fokuset blir blant annet forklart gjennom to politiske målsetninger: Å saudifisere (nasjonalisere) arbeidstyrken og diversifisere økonomien. Disse målene har er ansett som sentrale elementer i en videre utvikling av det saudiske samfunnet av den saudiske regjeringen.
Forfatteren opplever også at bedriftenes konkrete CSR handlinger er i samsvar med myndighetenes ønske om hvordan CSR i landet skal fungere. Dette blir forklart gjennom viktigheten av de enkelte selskapenes forhold til myndighetene, som igjen blir brukt som en mulig forklaring på hvorfor CSR aktiviteten varierer såpass mellom de ulike informant- selskapene i denne oppgaven.
Abstract
This study is exploring how Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is understood in Saudi Arabia, and comparing this to the international discourse of the same field. The author is using four international standards (UN Global Compact, OECD Guidelines for Multinational Companies, ISO 26000 and AccountAbility’s AA1000 Series of Standards), several theories, and core characteristics of CSR, to define the international discourse, and comparing this to the Saudi understanding of the very same concept.
To investigate the understanding of CSR by Saudis, a fieldwork in all over Saudi Arabia was done. The fieldwork began in Riyadh in the middle of the country, continued in Dammam, Al-Khobar and Daharan at the Gulf shoreline, before it finally finished in Jeddah by the Red Sea. During this fieldwork the author got access to a variety of leaders in the spheres of business, charity organizations, as well as private and public organizations. This has given information from many different kinds of sources within the Saudi field of CSR. Among the organizations used as sources, we find the governmental Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority (SAGIA), the private Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry, two Saudi charity organizations; King Khalid Foundation and King Faisal Foundation. The companies that are represented in this thesis are the world largest oil company; Saudi Arabian Oil Company (Saudi Aramco), the Saudi company importing Toyota; Abdul Latif Jameel, two Jotun companies based in Saudi Arabia with partial Norwegian ownership, and Rezayat Protective Coating.
The main findings are that development of human and social capital is the main emphasis of CSR efforts in Saudi Arabia, while human rights, labor rights and anti-corruption are elements that are not focused upon in this field. These findings are further explained by the author with different social problems, political goals and certain values in the Saudi society.
CSR is in the Kingdom considered an important tool to make the private sector contribute to the development of the Saudi society. The main ways this concept is meant to contribute to this is through the officially stated goals of Saudification of the workforce and diversification of the economy. Since many of the CSR efforts in Saudi Arabia also seems to contribute to this development in the very same way, the author concludes that Corporate Social Responsibility seems to be a collaboration between the private and the public sector in the Kingdom, and that the companies’ different emphasis on CSR can be explained by the companies different importance of having a good relationship with the authorities.