Unilever is ranked among the top FMCGs of the world. Unilever Pakistan, formerly known as Lever Brothers Pakistan Ltd., is doing business in the subcontinent for more than a century. I guess every Pakistani has used Lifebuoy and Dalda at least once in his life. Given this immense popularity and of course the resultant big earnings, I was expecting a massive CSR scene at the company but unfortunately that’s not the case.

Unilever has a very detailed CSR section on its Web site. Browsing through the pages, I found out some interesting facts. The company is focusing its CSR efforts in the following sectors:

• Education
• Health and Hygiene
• Sustainable Development

Education:

In the educational field, Unilever is supporting TCF - The citizens foundation - in building and running schools. Additionally, it has also entered agreements with the Pakistan Center for Philanthropy and The CARE Foundation for building schools. They have also forged alliances with LUMS, GIKI and Beacon House National University whereby they finance the education of selected females. These higher education efforts are commendable but one wonders why they have focused thier attention to just females?

Health:

In the health sector, Unilever’s CSR encompasses financial grants to the Karachi-based Kidney Centre, Layton Rehmatullah Benevolent Trust and Mary Adelaide Leprosy Center. They also support any two breast cancer patients at Lahore-based Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital.

Additionally, Unilever Pakistan has also installed some handpumps in interior Sindh with the help of a local NGO.

Lifebuoy brand worked with LEAD and donated 20 hand pumps to twenty schools in the areas of Khairpur and Sukkur. Through this installation, 3,324 students and 123 teachers are benefiting from having Lifebuoy hand pumps.

Sustainable Development:

Unilever’s sustainable development strategy hovers around installing some hand pumps, bio-sand filters and hand pumps in Thar, and nothing more. They have currently no nationwide sustainable development program, which is strange to say the least. Pakistan’s largest FMCG has a much greater social responsibility then just financing the education expenses of a few female students or installing a few hand pumps.

Of late, the company is also facing a lot of criticism about its relations with employees and many have claimed that the company is not socially responsible as it exploits its workers. Even if we set aside these controversial practices, I still feel that the company’s CSR efforts are not proportionate to its size and financial conditions. What do you guys think? Are they doing other things in CSR that I am not aware of?

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