ABSTRACT
The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has evolved from a concept into action, from a vision into reality, and from an initiative into a widely used public good by adhering to the principles of attaining shared progress via dialogue and collaboration. As the scale of BRI continues to expand, the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) practices of Chinese Multinational Enterprise (MNEs) have become a widely debated topic in the academia. The Chinese government mandates firms to consider the demands of diverse stakeholders when developing foreign development strategies, advocating Chinese MNEs to adhere to sustainable development practices and the win-win principle. This chapter begins by presenting the theoretical basis of Chinese MNEs’ CSR reporting in BRI countries through revisiting the classical and contemporary CSR theories. The chapter then points out the importance of studying CSR reporting in the context of the BRI. Finally, this chapter reveals critical factors that affect CSR reporting of Chinese MNEs along the Belt and Road. The main argument is that BRI can be viewed as a government-led international business activity that is augmented through good CSR performance.
