Corporate social responsibility in the mining sector in Zimbabwe

Abstract

Zimbabwe like any other developing country, invests funds in supporting the upliftment of communities and in social programmes that enhances community development. The increasing rate of unemployment and low skills level poses a threat to sustainable development. To support a strategic shift towards impactful results, organisations with the help of the government need constructive and efficient Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) policy, which is simple and user friendly. This can assist project managers and company managers to improve effectiveness and efficiency of CSR programmes. Using a qualitative approach, this study examined the nature of CSR in the mining sector in Zimbabwe to understand the challenges that are faced by mining companies. This paper can be used to design a CSR policy that lead to the planning and implementation of programmes in the mining sector that yield impactful results. Using purposive sampling, four CSR managers were selected from two Zimbabwean mining companies (Zimplats and Zimbabwe Consolidated Diamond mining Company). Data was collected through semi-structured interviews and analysed using thematic analysis. Findings indicate that mining companies in Zimbabwe are involved in CSR initiatives, but they are faced with a number of challenges including lack of participation from the communities and limited financial resources.