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IDB AND IACD PROMOTE CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY IN LATIN AMERICA

The Inter-American Development Bank’s Multilateral Investment Fund has approved a $ 1.1 million grant to the Fundación Acción Empresarial for a program to promote Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), to help the private sector devise better ways to boost social development in Latin America and the Caribbean.

The program is being executed in conjunction with the Inter-American Agency for Cooperation and Development (IACD), the development arm of the of Organization ofAmerican States (OAS). The IACD received support from the United States Mission to the OAS for the original design of the program.

The first IDB-supported regional program of its kind, the initiative is geared towards training and capacity building. An initial pilot program will be conducted in Chile, Brazil, El Salvador and Peru, to help promote positive action by companies, particularly small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Models developed will be extended to the rest of Latin America and the Caribbean.

The IACD Director General, Ronald Scheman, mentioned that, “The new program will demonstrate that improving the environment in which their employees work results in real increases of productivity and competitiveness. It will increase awareness among businessmen of the benefits of CSR and disseminate its new approaches among the private sector as well as with NGOs, universities and governments. These principles will be applied to pilot groups of SMEs, to utilize their experiences as an example for other companies.”

Participating organizations in each of the countries will also benefit through courses, publications, seminars and specific activities to promote the continuation of project-related initiatives.

The Inter-American Agency for Cooperation and Development was created by the OAS General Assembly in November 1999 to accelerate development in member states through technical cooperation, training and capacity–building; promote new and more effective forms of cooperation among member states; and enhance partnerships with the private sector, civil society and other development organizations.

An overarching theme for IACD activities is corporate social responsibility, an approach based on a comprehensive set of policies, practices and programs centered around respect for ethical principles, human beings, communities and the environment.

Administered by the IDB as an autonomous entity, the Multilateral Investment Fund promotes development of the private sector in Latin America and the Caribbean through investments and grants

Reference: IACD082003