CSR Turkey

Focus on a Partner - September 2009

In this month's interview, Serdar Dinler, Chairman of the Board of CSR Turkey, explains the state of CSR in Turkey and how the first-ever Turkish MarketPlace on CSR, to be held in October 2009, aims to put corporate social responsibility in the spotlight. In addition, Serdar Dinler provides an overview of CSR Turkey's efforts and initiatives to accelerate the uptake of CSR in Turkey and the region.

CSR Turkey, in partnership with CSR Europe is implementing the EU co-funded project "Accelerating CSR in Turkey." What, in your opinion, is the current state of CSR in Turkey and how is the project working to advance this concept in the country?

Serdar Dinler

In the business environment of Turkey, there is confusion over the definition of CSR and this is reflected in the CSR practices.

In general, companies have a positive attitude towards "soft" issues like community involvement or environmental protection. However, stakeholder engagement is restricted to partnerships or joint projects with NGOs covering social projects as well as sponsorship activities. Engagement in issues like human rights and employee participation needs to be further developed.

SMEs in Turkey still need strong efforts to take on CSR. In Turkey, economic fundamentals and cultural dimensions do not reflect a strong societal influence on CSR. Public awareness is still weak. Therefore, there is a special need to create awareness and develop a public opinion about CSR. Media plays a key stimulating role in Turkey. Hence, an increased appearance of CSR focus in media would enhance CSR in Turkey.

Foreign direct investment in Turkey influences CSR practices. Multinational corporations (MNCs) put positive pressures to their local branches and their suppliers, and this process sets trends for Turkish companies. External drivers such as international organisations positively affect the CSR practices in Turkey. Corporate Governance Codes announced by the Capital Markets Board (CMB) have created a certain level of awareness and understanding for reporting of stakeholder policies and hence implementation of CSR.

However, there is still a need for further development of a legal framework and governance of CSR. As the reporting process is underdeveloped, assurance systems are far from being complete and functioning. In such a framework, more effective implementation of CSR with a focus on the right issues, the definition, the goals and outcomes need to be discussed and shared with the larger business community and social actors. In this regard, urgent activities on developing capacity on CSR and raising awareness on CSR is key in Turkey.

As part of its efforts to strengthen the understanding of CSR concept in Turkey, CSR Turkey undertakes the Accelerating CSR in Turkey Project with CSR Europe, which covers CSR conferences along with workshops specially designed for articulating the relationship between the CSR and Media and CSR for SMEs.

In addition to those awareness raising activities, the project organizes the Turkey CSR Solutions MarketPlace which will provide a platform for companies and stakeholder groups to exchange CSR ideas and information. The Turkish Business Road Map on CSR, to be launched during the Turkish Marketplace on CSR, could serve as a basis for the launch of other similar initiatives at the Turkish Level, using European CSR strategies as an example and guide. This, in turn, would bring enterprises from Europe and Turkey closer together in corporate values, creating a mutual understanding of each other. These efforts also need to be supported with structural policy and programme development.

In light of Turkey's efforts towards European Union membership, what would role can a responsible Turkish business community and specifically CSR contribute towards Turkey's contribution to a sustainable and competitive Europe?

CSR Turkey defends that strengthening the social responsibility concept in Turkey could facilitate EU membership talks. Turkey is increasingly harmonizing its legislation in preparation for EU accession. Part of this harmonization entails the adoption of the acquis communautaire - the legislation that all EU members must share as members of a political and economic union. Important parts of the acquis cover CSR issues such as consumer and environmental protection and the promotion of fair competition.

The EU would continue to serve as an anchor in this process however; Turkey should not simply follow EU laws or react to international trends in CSR. Turkey has already demonstrated leadership in some areas of CSR. Immediate steps to engage in business training and working on a national workshop which will discuss CSR legislation is key. With a population over 71 million, Turkey is a huge potential market. Furthermore, the population structure is comparatively much younger than any member country of the European Union and this young population is more sensitive to CSR issues.

Responsible business practices are becoming more competitive in the changing business environment. Europe's social model requires Turkey to catch up with that changing business environment which highlights CSR as an important determinant of Turkish competitiveness and efficiency in the way to EU accession. In compliance with the need for competitive companies, Turkish companies need to develop sustainable CSR partnership with EU counterparts.

Moreover, integration of CSR practices into business practices ranging from supply chains to human resources. Companies who do not comply with EU regulations will not be allowed into the large markets. Lack of market access for Turkish companies will prevent them from access over 500 million potential consumers and 8.5 trillion euros worth of market demand.

CSR Turkey, in cooperation with CSR Europe, will organize the first-ever Turkish MarketPlace on CSR on the 23^rd of October. What are the main aims of the event?

Turkey CSR Solutions MarketPlace event aims to provide an interactive environment to exchange information, ideas, experiences and solutions on CSR with representatives from the private sector, NGOs, Government and Media in Turkey. It is important to see the results of the work of the companies because it will contribute a better understanding between business and society. It aims to put CSR in the spotlight by emphasizing the most successful CSR activities of the companies in Turkey. It is an event different from the others because it offers an informal, exchange-driven and creative environment. The marketplace will encourage all companies, big and small, to continue and to improve themselves in the area of CSR.

The MarketPlace will bring an opportunity to showcase companies' CSR best practices in the country. What can companies obtain from participating in the event?

Companies that add a value to society will be the future leading companies. Companies start to realize that and show a great interest to represent their company and Turkey in the area of CSR. So it will be a unique experience to showcase their initiatives in this arena. They will have the opportunity to present their solutions to all the stakeholders in an interactive platform. They will connect with other CSR practitioners, learn from their experiences and find inspiration from the presented solutions.

CSR Turkey is the most active and influential organization promoting CSR in Turkey. What other projects or activities are you currently implementing to embed the concept of CSR further in the country?

Accelerating CSR in Ukraine and Turkey: Accelerating CSR in Ukraine and Turkey Project is a project that aims to raise awareness on the main themes of CSR among the business community and key stakeholders. The project will cover EU, WTO, OECD and other international CSR standards to develop capacity-building on CSR issues. The main activities of the project include generating CSR Situation Reports that analyze current CSR situation and efforts in Turkey and Ukraine. Then these reports will be publicized via 2 national CSR Events that will gather CSR stakeholders of both countries.

Enhancing CSR in Iran and Turkey: The project will mainly target CSR "advocates" in Turkey & Iran, including CSR NGOs and businesses seeking to improve and bring their business practices in line with international standards. The project proposes to foster participation of NGOs and businessmen in CSR workshops and working to create tools, resources and methodologies for business to behave socially responsible on social, economical and environmental issues so that business can have a positive impact on the development of the society.

Motivating Industrial Designer for Environmental Friendly Choices and a Sustainable Future: The project aims; to help industrial designers to understand the reasons, currently state and results of the severe global crisis that the Planet Earth is facing, to make an integration between life styles, consumption patterns and the environmental problems, to understand the interaction between environmental, social and economical considerations, to understand the importance of having sustainable lifestyles, to make connections with sustainable development, design choices, production, business activities and impact of a small change on the people living across boundaries.

More information

Read more about CSR Turket at http://www.csrturkey.org/

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