Assessment of corporate social responsibility within the stakeholder theory in commercial microfinance institutions in Bolivia

Abstract

Currently, some microfinance institutions in Bolivia are adopting Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), a concept whereby companies integrate social and environmental concerns in their business operations and publish the results. CSR is applied mostly by big companies in the North and in sectors more in the eye of the public, such as oil production or textile and apparel. A number of research questions arise: Why would small financial institutions from a country in the South and under little public scrutiny incorporate CSR in their organizations? Microfinance, their business operation, is already considered social, why go beyond that? Could it be the case of truly social-committed firms or are they just acting strategically? What role do stakeholders play in the microfinance institutions' (MFls) decision to engage CSR? The following paragraphs describe the problem statement, justification and research questions of this thesis.