Development and the Private Sector: Consuming Interests

Edited by: 
Eade, Deborah
Edited by: 
Sayer, John

 

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The private sector has a major impact on our daily lives, not only shaping the economy but also increasingly taking on the provision of basic social services. Growing corporate power has generated a backlash as companies are held to account for the social and environmental impacts of their business. The "corporate social responsibility" movement has many implications for development, and has provoked fierce debates over whether controls should remain voluntary, or form part of tighter international regulation of business.

This collection examines the impact of the private sector on development, whether through core business practices, corporate responsibility endeavors, or philanthropic activities. Drawing on examples from around the globe, contributers suggest how the private sector might do less harm, and how - by fostering equitable development - it could even do more good.

John Sayer is director of Oxfam Hong Kong

CONTENTS

Preface
Deborah Eade

Introductory Essay: Do More Good, Do Less Harm
John Sayer

1. Calling Business to Account: Beyond Corporate Social Responsibility

In whose name? The accountability of corporate social responsibility
Jem Bendell

Corporate responsibility and the movement of business
Peter Utting

Corporate accountability to the poor? Assessing the effectiveness of community-based strategies
Niamh Garvey and Peter Newell

2. Investing in Development?


Public resistance to privatisation in water and energy
David Hall, Emanuele Lobina, and Robin De La Motte

Public service privatisation and crisis in Argentina
Leopoldo Rodríguez-Boetsch

Size matters: the need for human-scale economic institutions for development
Julian Oram and Deborah Doane

Java furniture makers: globalisation winners or losers?
Lienda Loebis and Hubert Schmitz

The World Bank's land of kiosks: Community Driven Development in Timor-Leste
Ben Moxham

3. Pressure for Change: Fair Trade and Ethical Codes of Conduct

Managing ethical standards: when rhetoric meets reality
Sumi Dhanarajan

Corporate responsibility and the US-Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA): are they compatible?
Carolina Quinteros

Partnering for sustainability: business-NGO alliances in the coffee industry
April Linton

Reaching the marginalised? Gender value chains and ethical trade in African horticulture
Anne Tallontire, Catherine Dolan, Sally Smith, and Stephanie Ware Barrientos

4. Resources

Development and the Private Sector: An Annotated List of Selected Resources

© Kumarian Press Inc. 2006.
ISBN 1 56549 218 8
All rights reserved.

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