Private Enterprise and the Sustainable Community Economic Development in Bangladesh A Case Study on the PRAN-RFL Group
- May 12, 2021
- Posted by: rsispostadmin
- Category: IJRISS
International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS) | Volume V, Issue IV, April 2021 | ISSN 2454–6186
Mohamed K Haq1, Saleh Md Arman2, Farzana Nazera3
1Department of Management, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh
2MSc in Sustainable Development, Uppsala University, RP Shaha University, Bangladesh
3Ph.D. Student in Management, Limkokwing University of Creative Technology, Malaysia
Abstract:- Community Economic Development (CED) practice in Bangladesh is vital in ensuring the sustainability of the community and economy of Bangladesh and it contributes to the creation and maintenance of economic, social, ecological, human, political, and cultural capitals of communities in a sustainable and progressive manner. Existing literature in Bangladesh perspective mostly focuses on NGO contributions. However, local large conglomerates have contributions in this aspect and the study would like to tap on the research gap by conducting an intensive case study on PRAN-RFL Group (PRG), one of the largest conglomerates in Bangladesh and South East Asia. The case study provided a theoretical background of the business profile of the PRG. Researchers collected data from the organizations about their CED contributions to different areas of Bangladesh even in the ongoing COVID19 time. PRG’s contributions to those remote areas were found significant and valuable to make the society sustainable and resilient. For this reason, the partnership between the PRGand the community (individual entrepreneur) was remarkable. The study concluded that PRG’s contribution to the CED practices set examples of their competitors of Bangladesh in various CED practices. The study recommended further quantitative analysis in assessing community farmers and reverse migration in this aspect.
Keywords: Sustainable Community Economic Development, PRAN-RFL Group (PRG), Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
1.Introduction:
The significance of Sustainable Community Economic Development (CED) practices in Bangladesh has a long history and the contribution to different entities (e.g.,NGOs and Business Organizations) are remarkable (Islam, 2016).It is a multidimensional concept for which corporate social action can contribute to the creation and maintenance of economic, social, ecological, human, political, and cultural capitals of communities in a sustainable and progressive manner (Idemudia, 2007; Muthuriet al., 2012). Business Corporations of Bangladesh do not operate in closed systems but in open systems where the community stakeholders of Bangladesh are becoming more aware and conscious of their rights and where they expect companies to embrace expanded social responsibilities and to contribute to complex societal problems in a particular governance arena. Three interrelated, interconnected and intertwined goals of sustainable community economic development (improved socioeconomic and cultural conditions of the host communities, capacity building and self-help in host communities, and community empowerment) are vital in this aspect (ibid).The PRAN-RFL Group, one of the largest conglomerates of Bangladesh and the South East Asia, has remarkable contributions to the field of CED. They do their CED contributions mainly through contract farming where they engage in business community partnership model (Haq, Arman and Nazera, 2021; PRAN-RFL Group, 2017).
