Corporate Social Responsibility

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implementation of liquidity and solvency banking regulations. However, the IMF also noted that the national banking system remains fragile and needs to be improved, and national financial markets need to be deepened. The IMF also demanded that the government address gaps in the financial supervisory perimeter as the regulatory framework for the microfinance industry remains incomplete and some small institutions could escape oversight.

5.4. Corporate Social Responsibility

“The idea of corporate social responsibility (CSR)— that is, businesses bearing a responsibility to society and a broader set of stakeholders beyond its shareholders—gained currency in the 1960s. Since then, attention on CSR has been growing in both academic and practitioner communities around the world. While there have been criticisms and debates on whether it was appropriate for corporations to expand their remit beyond shareholder value, an increasing majority of corporations have proactively committed to addressing larger societal challenges.

With a variety of options for corporate engagement in mainstream society and local communities, corporations have created dedicated organizational units to effectively manage their social obligations. There is commensurate growth in specialized organizations operating at national and global levels that advise on, and often implement, targeted short-term projects or longer-term sustained community-level programs.

Over 8,000 companies from more than 150 countries are signatories to the United Nations’

Global Compact, covering issues on human rights, labor standards, the environment, and anti-corruption initiatives. The scale and prominence of these trends indicate that discussions of CSR have shifted from existential questions regarding organizational mission and shareholder value to the mechanisms and processes by which corporations conceptualize and enact their

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societal obligations. Similarly, the dialog has shifted from simplistic justifications of financial outcomes related to core businesses to sophisticated views and measures of societal outcomes.”

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5.4.1. CSR in Taiwan

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) has become increasingly popular in advanced economies in the West. In contrast, CSR awareness in Asia is rather low, both on the corporate and state level. However, recent events have shown that the CSR is receiving more attention by corporations in Asia. Recent development in CSR in Taiwan is one example of such a trend. A 2005 survey on the 700 publicly listed companies in Taiwan on CSR has highlighted the current CSR situation. Concurrently, the numbers of corporate scandals and corruption have dramatically increased over the past years. Corporate CSR activities co-existing with pervasive corporate scandals create a phenomenon of contradictions. [15]

As CSR is a growing global trend, Taiwan and its regulators have kept in line with international practices in promoting CSR.As such, the Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) has gradually revised the scope of CSR disclosure, and instructed the Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE) and Taipei Exchange (TPEx) to launch "Corporate Social Responsibility Best Practice Principles for TWSE/TPEx-Listed Companies" and "Ethical Corporate Management Best Practice Principles for TWSE/TPEx-Listed Companies" in 2010 with the objective of guiding Taiwan's listed companies to practice corporate social responsibility and implement integrity management measures. Furthermore, the FSC announced the "Corporate Governance Roadmap 2013" as a guideline for promoting corporate governance and CSR policies in Taiwan. On the investment level for markets, labor insurance and retirement funds have been steadily incorporating CSR in their considerations for selecting stocks. The TWSE has also launched

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"TWSE RA Taiwan Employment Creation 99 Index" and "TWSE High Salary 100 Index". [16]

Through the design and promotion of these indexes, the TWSE hopes to encourage enterprises to improve employment opportunities and employee wages. In advancing the practice of corporate social responsibility, the FSC has been guiding the TWSE and TPEx in hosting the

"Business Integrity and Corporate Social Responsibility for Listed Companies Forum" since 2011. Through sharing business integrity and CSR experiences by benchmarking companies, examples for practicing CSR are provided for listed companies. In 2014, the TWSE also joined the World Federation of Exchanges' sustainability working group. By learning and sharing new information, the TWSE hopes that Taiwan's capital market specifications can meet international standards in regards to environmental, social, and governance considerations, thus quickening the pace of Taiwanese corporations in assimilating measures for social responsibility. [16]

5.4.2. CSR in Nicaragua

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) practices in our Nicaragua date back to the late 1950s, when Mr. Alfredo Pellas distributed ten percent of profits among his workers at Ingenio San Antonio. The Nicaraguan Foundation for Corporate Social Responsibility (uniRSE) is a non-governmental, non-profit organization founded by 22 members in the city of Managua on April 29, 2005. Its purpose is to promote, disseminate and deepen Corporate Social Responsibility as a new business model in the country.

The idea of this organization is to promote a socially responsible culture that contributes to sustainable development, both in companies and in the Nicaraguan society. Currently, it has more than 90 members; including a wide variety of companies, business leaders, individuals, foundations, cooperatives and business organizations.

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It should be noted that uniRSE is a founding member of the Central American Network for Corporate Social Responsibility (Integrarse), and of the National Chapter of the WBCSD, World Business Council for Sustainable Development since 2006.

Although the organization has different socio-economic development characteristics for each country, its unifying patterns of a global definition concentrate on the generation of products, employment and wealth for the social economic progress and wellbeing. CSR is a universal model applicable to all types and sizes of companies, ready to play a role in favor of sustainable development, that is, in favor of the balance between economic growth, social well-being and the use of natural resources and the environment.

CSR in Nicaragua has as its main task to do business based on ethical principles and in accordance with the law; it constitutes an instrument to increase the competitiveness and productivity of companies, contributing to their profitability. Its main objective is that its practices generate a positive impact in the different areas with which a company has a relationship, both internally and externally.