Can Corporate Governance Improve Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Accounting Disclosure in Egyptian Banks?

Abstract

This paper analyzes local-global Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) accounting reporting practices in Egyptian financial institutions’ annual reports and websites. Also, it explores ways forward the Egyptian Corporate Governance (CG) code can enhance CSR accounting reporting after two revolutions. A content analysis is conducted on the annual reports and websites of various banks (public, private and joint venture, branches of foreign banks). The employed disclosure index uses the European Social Justice Index (ESJI), Global Reporting Initiatives (GRI), literature, and a pilot review of Egyptian banks’ annual reports and websites. The results indicate that western CSR reporting practices in Egyptian banks’ annual reports and websites have hegemony over local concerns of CSR such as zakat fund, quard hassan, public policy, unlawful (haram) transactions, and cultural issues. Furthermore, this research concludes by giving insights for the development of CG code to enhance the quality of CSR reporting.