An Anthropological Reimagining of Contract in Global Value Chains: The Governance of Corporate-community Relations in the Colombian Mining Sector

Abstract

Abstract This contribution introduces an ant’s rather than a bird’s eye view on the legal institution global value chains (GVCs) have become. An ant’s view makes the abstract construct of the GVC tangible but at the same time reveals its unclear boundaries – where do GVCs begin and end? The article reflects on the role of contracts and contract law in the drawing and subsequent regulation of boundaries. It takes the reader into Colombia’s globalised natural resource sector where complex contractual constructs determine the relationships between firms, the state and local communities. These contractual constructs, together with the law, corporate codes of conduct and international standards that regulate them, create close and intertwined boundaries between the firm and its societal environment. In that closeness, the mining firm assumes and voices far-reaching responsibilities for the economic and social well-being of local communities. In regard to those corporate social responsibilities, contract law could and should play a pivotal role in the societal governance of GVCs.