The Paradox of Corporate Social Responsibility in Africa: Case of French Multinational Corporations

In the context of globalisation Africa requires investment by multinational corporations (MNCs) to improve its competitiveness and to facilitate micro-level structural changes required for alleviating poverty and reducing its riskiness for investment. Economic theory recognises that MNCs can contribute to economic growth in developing countries through generating positive externalities. However, the extent to which Africa benefits from spill-over effects of MNCs remains to be empirically investigated. While some multinational corporations that operate in Africa take the corporate social responsibility (CSR) policies seriously, on the other hand there had been several complaints in many African countries on how these French multinational corporations conduct business within the continent. Thus, this paper intends to analyse the various paradoxes that are surrounding the activities of French multinational companies operating in Africa.