The Americas case study
- Canadian companies have negative image in some Latin American countries; causing some to wear American lapels even though they are Canadian.
- A lot of abuses being reported are related to security forces.
- Biggest competitor for Canada is China
- Corporate Social Responsibility
- Context of idea of how CSR arose
- Emergence of language of corporate social responsibility
- Mid 1990's --> CSR became serious issue for mining corporations (and other businesses)
- Late 1990's--> change in rules with mining techniques (expanded in scope and scale)
- became necessary for large amount of land and water (mining)
- In Latin America: there is land issues, corruption, governance issues; thus companies had to deal with this
- Keep in mind the context of how CSR emerged
- Policy incoherence
- Nature of corporate social responsibility is that it is voluntary
- Laws that regulate flow of money and protect investments abroad
- Growth of other competitors (India & China) will create a challenge for Canada
- Adapt to the country (Brazil is different from other Latin American countries; not the same!)
- Create community
- Mexican & Canadian relations
- Perception of sovereignty of natural resources
- Address competitive aspect of how contracts are being distributed
- Canadian corporations do not have the same means as other countries (like China)
- Chinese mining companies tend to be more competitive than Canada
- Many countries use tools that are not available to Canada
- What about natural resources? Who should control it?
- Canadian message: The company is there to help that country's government and country
- Canadian companies have a policy of compromise
- Companies are competitive to attract capital
- Voluntary initiatives fail at the end of the day
- Punishing corporations for non-compliance
- Can logic of competitor lead to rising standards?
- Huge problem with uneven playing fields, even with Canadian players
- Some Canadian companies received NGO attacks
- This led to a competitive disadvantage
- Agreement that standards apply globally & country specific guidelines are needed
- Lay out with ETI & equator principles; where is China at? How can we address that need for global standards?
- The Chinese have a straightforward business proposition
- There are some Chinese companies that do the right things
- There is a saying in Africa, "You can see which roads the Chinese have built because they are always straight."
- Resolution to have annual hemispheric meeting to talk about private/public partnerships and get more exposure
- Government strategy
- Initiative between all sectors (not only extractives)
- For example, in Mexico, Scotiabank has as much of a presence as the mining companies