New policy obligates corporates to spend higher on CSR

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🗞️ Driving the news: Bangladesh is preparing a national corporate social responsibility policy that would require listed companies, banks, insurers and other large businesses to spend at least 1% of their previous year’s pre-tax profit on CSR activities

🔭 The context: The draft National Corporate Social Responsibility Policy 2026 would establish common rules for CSR spending, project selection, monitoring, reporting and transparency, while aligning corporate initiatives with the UN Sustainable Development Goals and UN Global Compact
• Covered entities would include listed companies, financial institutions, insurers, state-controlled enterprises, multinational companies operating in Bangladesh and businesses above specified financial thresholds
• Political donations, advertising, fines, mandatory compensation, regular employee benefits and personal benefits for owners or directors would not qualify as CSR expenditure

🌍 Why it matters: The proposal would shift CSR in Bangladesh from largely voluntary corporate activity toward a more formal governance and spending obligation
• Boards would carry overall responsibility, while larger companies would need dedicated CSR committees and annual disclosures covering expenditure, projects, beneficiaries and outcomes
• The policy also explicitly targets greenwashing, prohibiting unsupported environmental claims or the presentation of limited initiatives as broader sustainability achievements

⏭️ What’s next: The Ministry of Commerce is seeking stakeholder feedback before finalising the policy, while a proposed National CSR Coordination Committee would oversee implementation across government agencies

📈 One stat: Covered companies would be required to allocate at least 1% of their previous year’s pre-tax profit to CSR activities, with administrative costs capped at 10% of actual CSR spending

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