Several issues of corporate social responsibility (CSR) in Saudi Arabia will come under the spotlight at the third Saudi Forum for Corporate Social Responsibility that opened in Jeddah today.

Prince Khalid Al-Faisal bin Abdul Aziz, Emir of Makkah Region and Prince Mishaal bin Majed bin Abdulaziz, Governor of Jeddah opened the two-day event at the Park Hyatt - Jeddah.

The names of the winning Saudi companies recognised for implementing social responsibility programs launched by the Chamber of Commerce last year will be announced at the forum organised by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Jeddah in cooperation with Economy and Business Group.

The first session of the forum will discuss how to achieve a triangle partnership in social responsibility, mechanisms of formulating a national agenda for social responsibility, and the implications of activating the partnership between the public and private sectors on social development.

The second session of the forum will tackle the role of social responsibility in building the corporate brand, ways of measuring the return on corporate social responsibility in brand customer confidence.

The third session explains how to align between business strategy and social responsibility programs, and practical tools to enhance the staff involvement in social work inside and outside the company.

During the second day, the forum raises in its fourth session the challenges facing Saudi companies in the field of social responsibility reports, while the fifth session of the forum will discuss the theme of sustainability and drawing the road map to conserve resources. However, the closing session of the forum will focus on the reality and prospects of existing initiatives, and linking youth social initiatives with funding sources and technical support.

“The forum will focus in its third session on finding appropriate mechanisms to formulate a national agenda for social responsibility, reviewing the latest developments in the field of corporate social responsibility, and the new challenges that surround this activity in the Kingdom, while the discussions will focus on the trends of the next phase to deepen the culture of corporate social responsibility and be directly linked to work strategies,” said Ahmed bin Abdul Aziz al-Hamdan, head of the Jeddah Center for Social Responsibility.

“Moreover, there will be a review of the ways to strengthen cooperation between the public and private sectors in order to expand the experience of social responsibility and sustainability.”

“We have seen during the last period remarkable and intense orientation of most Saudi companies towards adopting initiatives for social responsibility due to their awareness of their role in the development of society, stemming from the high Islamic values,” he explained.

“Many distinguished experiences have emerged involving high levels of innovation and creativity, emphasizing the depth of companies expertise in social responsibility and their strive to make these initiatives meaningful, effective and able to live up the significant role of the private sector in the process of social development in the country.

“Hence, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Jeddah has initiated to launch the prize of Saudi corporate social responsibility within the endeavor to highlight the outstanding efforts and encourage and motivate companies to make greater efforts to develop this fruitful national action,” he concluded. – TradeArabia News Service