Corporate social investment beneficial to all

When world leaders meet for the 69th session of the UN General Assembly next month, part of the discussion will be on the new set of Sustainable Development Goals. ILLUSTRATION | JOHN NYAGAH

What you need to know:

  • Data by the World Bank shows that there was 108 per cent primary school enrolment by 2012. It further indicated there was 93 per cent completion rate among male pupils and 91 per cent completion for females.
  • Recognising the role to be played in furthering this agenda, last week, the Safaricom Foundation unveiled a three-year strategy, which is aligned to key development areas, and which aims at creating lasting social, economic and environmental transformation for communities in Kenya.

When world leaders meet for the 69th session of the UN General Assembly next month, part of the discussion will be on the new set of Sustainable Development Goals.

The United Nations working group charged with developing the post-2015 Millennium Development Goals agenda early this month came up with its final proposal, which included a set of 17 goals and 169 targets.

If adopted, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) will come into effect in 2015, after the expiration of the Millennium Development Goals.

Whether or not the MDG’s have been a success is subject to debate. What is clear, though, is that they have helped in speeding up development, improving the quality of life and enhancing public-private partnerships.

For instance, Kenya has done well towards achieving universal primary education after the introduction of Free Primary Education in 2003. Data by the World Bank shows that there was 108 per cent primary school enrolment by 2012. It further indicated there was 93 per cent completion rate among male pupils and 91 per cent completion for females.

The corporate sector contributes towards Kenya’s development agenda, and increasingly, local, regional and global development plans have identified roles and responsibilities for private sector participation.

One of the key new trajectories of the Vision 2030 second medium term review was an acknowledgement of the need for more private sector participation to transform Kenya into a middle income economy by 2030.

At the global level, the Sustainable Development Goals recognise the importance of public and private partnerships to mobilise resources, share knowledge, expertise and technologies to support the attainment of the new, broader and value-based set of goals.

AREAS OF SYNERGY

So, what does this all mean for the Kenyan corporate foundation?

There have been a number of forums aiming to bring corporate foundations together to discuss strategic approaches, sustainable programmes and areas of synergy.

We may not have accurate figures on how much corporate foundations and entities donate and invest in Kenya through their Corporate Social Investment programmes, but the amount is indeed sizeable. Corporate Social Investment should not be seen merely as “giving back to community” but as contributing towards Kenya’s overall development agenda.

Recognising the role to be played in furthering this agenda, last week, the Safaricom Foundation unveiled a three-year strategy, which is aligned to key development areas, and which aims at creating lasting social, economic and environmental transformation for communities in Kenya.

It is important for corporate foundations to build proactive partnership models and move away from only collaborating during emergencies such as famine, drought and displacement.

The power of corporate partnership, supporting public goals such as education, maternal health, child health, economic empowerment, peace and justice can be transformational for our country. We cannot separate business from the communities in which we operate and from our overall country indicators. They are symbiotic.

Corporate Social Investment is about making sustainable change, transforming lives and being a responsible business.

Joseph Ogutu Mr Ogutu is the chairman of the Safaricom Foundation.