ABSTRACT
In the United Kingdom, which is seen by many to have been at the forefront of this area, many Non-Governmental Organisations are now turning their back on corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives, or even making them the focus of criticism and campaigns. International development groups such as the New Economics Foundation, War on Want and Christian Aid are not as active in the Ethical Trading Initiative, which they all helped to found and which brought them together with companies to work on improving labour conditions in corporate supply chains. Some criticised Christian Aid's report for not engaging with the companies it was attacking or not conducting a more systemic analysis of the impacts of CSR. Whatever its possible contradictions, the discourse and practice of CSR and corporate citizenship is globalising. In February 2004, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan called on Japanese companies for leadership in citizenship, telling them that business has a key role to play in addressing the world's problems.
