Public Health on Top

With a campaign titled "A Better Tomorrow CSR Summit & Awards", two organizations have very recently started divisional level virtual CSR dialogue. The title of the campaign resembles the official company slogan of British American Tobacco (BAT) - A Better Tomorrow^TM. The campaign will end on 25 September through an award-giving ceremony. BAT Bangladesh (BATB) has, so far, participated in several of these dialogues and made detailed presentations on their CSR programs (Banayan, Probaho, and Dipto). BATB participants have also mentioned that the company is currently working with the government to create a discussion platform on CSR. This is how in the presence of Members of Parliament (MPs), govt. officials, journalists, business persons, and other influential figures, BATB is using its so-called CSR activities to create a positive impression with regard to its corporate image.

Tobacco products help the covid-19 infection spread and claim 126,000 lives a year in Bangladesh. While the disastrous consequences of using their products are well-proven, tobacco companies have been using their CSR activities to hide how they contribute to deaths. From an ethical point of view, a company whose very purpose of existence is to manufacture products that cause death, should not be allowed to make hollow gestures of benevolence. 62 countries all over the world have already banned CSR activities of tobacco companies. Since the tobacco control law of Bangladesh does not include a complete ban on tobacco CSR, tobacco companies use this loophole to create close communication with policymakers and hamper overall tobacco control activities.

So, the existing tobacco control law of Bangladesh should be amended at the earliest to put an end to Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities of tobacco companies and thus expediting the materialization of a tobacco-free Bangladesh. This is how in the presence of Members of Parliament (MPs), govt. officials, journalists, business persons, and other influential figures, BATB is using its so-called CSR activities to make a position impression with regard to its corporate image.