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So having seen some of the problems, what are the solutions? This is where the arguments start to get a little complex. What do you think business should actually be responsible for? It is reasonably fair to expect that they act responsibly towards the people and areas that they directly deal with, but should it go further than that?
After years of successive governments tinkering with the overseas aid program, New Labour began to develop schemes around the idea of business-led development and economic activity as the route out of poverty in developing countries. This would seem to make sense – business means more jobs. But local employment does not sustainable development make. This needs investment in infrastructure and public services, and, unless these directly helped companies, why would companies be interested? Additionally firms operating in many countries are adept at minimising their tax burdens, shutting off the possibility of indirectly contributing to public investment. Moreover critics of business-led development argue that jobs tend to target already skilled workers, and the products they are making are rarely available for them, themselves, to consume. On any level, the contribution of business to poverty reduction is questionable.
That does not mean however that industry can kick back and do nothing. Even if we decide to absolve them of saving the third world (and there is an argument that we shouldn’t be giving them any more power anyway) we can expect them to reduce or remove negative impacts in their supply chain, and given that they only exist to supply our demands, perhaps to make a positive impact as well. The way in which companies choose to do this is known as Corporate Social Responsibility.