A Comparative Analysis of Corporate Social Responsibility Practices in the Banking Industry: The Case of Ghana and China

The Role of Corporate Organisations in Community Development; A Case of Two Rural Banks’ Corporate Social Responsibility, Ghana

“…CSR practices of corporate organisations have been fairly well-documented in empirical studies. The key practices include environmental sustainability efforts, philanthropy, services to communities for non-profit purposes, ethical and inclusive labour practices of treating employees fairly, employing local people, and involvement in volunteerism (Ayangbah, 2017). Corporate organisations or businesses undertake CSR projects to sustain themselves in business and to address the socioeconomic problems facing the society at large to advance the course of education, health, culture and livelihoods.…”

“…The rural banks, therefore, play a crucial role in rural development in Ghana, serving about 50% of the Ghanaian population, which is rural. Rural banks in Ghana, unlike the larger commercial banks in urban communities, are community-owned, hence they have adequate geo-cultural and economic ethnographic lenses of the communities they operate in and are better positioned than the commercial banks to implement proactive services and strategies that are in tune with local needs (Ayangbah, 2017. Rural banks in Ghana are run by the local communities with supervision by the central bank (Bank of Ghana) through the Association of Rural Banks (Apex Bank).…”

“…Literature on CSR of banks in Ghana is growing (Ayangbah, 2017, Mohd-Sofian & Muhamad, 2019. In studying corporate social responsibilities practices among commercial banks in Ghana, Oteng and Abayie (2017) found that CSR practices have become synonymous with community development and creating sustainable business opportunities.…”