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HCMC : CSR on the agenda !
Last week the Dutch Business Association in Vietnam (DBAV) organized a Breakfast Seminar focusing on CSR. The main topic: How to find a good CSR match for your SME? Three experts were invited to share their experience. This conference gathered people from different backgrounds: SME managers, NGOs, Startup founders, all of which came for the same purpose: learning more about how to create projects and collaborations delivering a positive impact on society.
As an introduction, DBAV presented the concept of CSR, how it varies across the globe to fit with the local society and how enterprises can turn CSR practices into one of their biggest strategic advantages. Integrating CSR in the company values implies to set up suitable goals that will turn the company into a socially responsible business.
Dana R. H. Doan is the founder and strategic advisor at LIN Center for Community Development: a Vietnamese NGO providing support services to local NPOs, skilled volunteers and donors committed to building strong communities. She caught the audience from her expertise related to CSR in the Vietnamese market. She successfully presented the main CSR trends, challenges and opportunities for businesses in Vietnam : when 90% of Asian companies consider CSR as an important part of their business strategy and 73% of consumers are willing to pay more for a positive impact in Vietnam, it is time for companies to get involved in sustainable projects. She mentioned the importance of creating long term relationships between companies and NGOs, way more strategic and efficient than making simple donations to charities.
The second speaker also discussed corporate community engagement. Marc Daggers is Senior Project officer at the Eye Care Foundation. The foundation helps prevent and cure avoidable blindness and visual impairment in developing countries. It is a great example of an organization that offers to companies such as HSBC, SCB or De Heus to make the shift from philanthropic aspirations to real involvement in a social project. The Eye Care Foundation has initiated many projects such as a 3- years program in a consortium with two other NGOs for the SBC Company. They also can adjust their offer for companies which want it to be part of a bigger strategy or to start small in order to gain experience…
Finally the third speaker, Jonas Van Binsbergen, founder of Shalom Coffee presented his sustainable business model based on quality, care and commitment. Shalom coffee made the choice to produce and distribute Fair Trade coffee and has made as an integral part of its mission to develop lasting, mutually beneficial partnerships by employing Fair Trade and Direct Trade practices with the farmers who cultivate their crops. The catchword of Jonas is “ Do more for the producer, do more for the consumer”. His addressing sustainability issues, his local implementation and his high knowledge level through the supply chain convinced a lot of businesses and led to the creation of strong partnerships. This success story inspires new green business models.
To conclude, this seminar was a good start for stimulating CSR discussion and raised the awareness of a very positive and concerned audience. CSR is becoming a hot topic in Ho Chi Minh City and at the heart of the debate in the business community.
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