An overview of corporate globalisation and the non-globalisation of corporate citizenship in Africa

Abstract

Rugman and Verbeke observe that transnational corporations (TNCs), as 'key drivers' of the globalisation process, foster 'economic interdependence among national markets', suggesting that readers are clearly in the era of corporate globalisation. This chapter begins by revisiting the main challenge of corporate globalisation as a whole. It provides an overview of transnational corporate activity in Africa and the ideology that has since been framing such activities. The discourse and practice of corporate citizenship in the North has been widening, and has attracted special government policy focus on its developments in European countries. TNCs in Africa are guided by a very capitalist ideology. F. Iyayi has argued that it is an ideology that rationalises the 'criminal actions' of TNCs. Similarly, Iyayi observes that the activities of logging companies in Cameroon have caused severe damage to the land, dramatically altering the ecosystem. Such environmental malpractices pose threats to people's health within the local communities in which such TNCs operate.