The Communication Officer of Voice of Nature (VoNat), Sandrine Akeabeh Tendongafac, has defended her masters degree thesis in Corporate Communication in the University of Buea, South West Region of Cameroon with distinction. She defended the thesis, January 4, 2023, at the conference Hall of the Faculty of Social and Management sciences (SMS) of the University, with the Executive Director of VoNat, Ndimuh B. Shancho, present to represent the Organization. The defense panel included Julius Che Tita (PhD), Associate professor of Journalism and Mass Communication as Supervisor, Prof Emmanuel V. Yenshu as chairperson and Dr Bisong Divine Epey as examiner.
The Candidate investigated on Corporate Social responsibility in Cameroon; An Analysis of 15 Annual reports of some companies. The researcher argues that companies in Cameroon need to legitimize their activities and respond more appropriately to the growing information needs of stakeholders via corporate social responsibility reporting done through the publication of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) reports, in a detailed, timely, consistent and coherent way. She also identifies that, a majority of organizations in Cameroon report on CSR in a section of their annual reports in a very shallow way, giving priority to financial disclosure than non-financial. This need prompted the researcher to examine CSR reporting in Cameroon of some selected companies, drawing reference from the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Standards.
According to Akeabeh, “a CSR report should respect the principles of report quality and content, to enable stakeholders do a proper evaluation/ appraisal of organizations activities and on the other hand, help companies to identify and address loopholes to satisfy stakeholder’s needs. My finding revealed that companies in Cameroon practice integrated reporting which involves the disclosure of financial and non-financial information to the public, but priority given to financial information”. She added that If companies operating in Cameroon know the importance of publishing CSR reports, then they will want to do so often; they would not light their candle and keep it under the bed. A CSR report is a powerful PR tool used to build mutually beneficial relationships with stakeholders, which boosts company’s brand, image and reputation”
According to the author, there are no specific mentions of CSR in Cameroonian laws and regulations dealing with corporate activities. CSR is only addressed indirectly and incidentally in specific aspects. “The legal framework of CSR in Cameroon is practically nonexistent or, inherently flawed by the fact that it is unstructured and inefficient hence the prevalence in Cameroon of corporate malpractices and socially irresponsible obligations,” she stated.
To resolve the issue of CSR reporting and timeliness of reports, the author recommends website reporting and challenges companies to publish specific reports in the country in which they operate and not globalize them. According to the researcher, publishing global reports makes it difficult for stakeholders to assess reports and make an appraisal of CSR activities.