During the precursor to the 1st Nagaland CSR & Investment Conclave held at State Banquet Hall, Kohima on July 4, Nagaland chief minister Neiphiu Rio rightly said that CSR coupled with private investments would serve as an important supplement to government spending and maximize the impact of interventions in critical development sectors. For a resource crunched state like Nagaland, any CSR funding and private investment is more than welcome.
Unfortunately, it also reveals just how mismanaged or misgoverned Nagaland is today. Successive governments over the years, nay decades, have been (mis)governing Nagaland state and that is why we are where we are today, lagging behind all other states in almost all development parameters. Given the situation, it was only natural that the government of Nagaland, through the Investment and Development Authority of Nagaland (IDAN), had conceived the idea of organizing the CSR and Investment Conclave.
It is tricky to say whether we should applaud the government for at least trying to attract CSR obligations by hosting the conclave or swear at the government for taking us so low as to beg the corporate houses to pity us!
Be that as it may, it is worth mentioning here that there are a number of private organizations in Nagaland who have been successful in ushering in development in their respective areas of operation through CSR funding.
There are also multiple reports of IAS officers from the mainland serving in the remote districts of Nagaland bringing novel projects through CSR. A number of such projects have been reported especially from Mon and Kiphire districts. An IPS officer is also doing a commendable job for the uplift of the community in Noklak.
True, they must have the right network and connections which is why they are able to bring CSR projects but the question is why no one is doing anything for Mokokchung.
The Hans Foundation has been supporting various development activities in Tuli area as CSR partners. Other than that, there is nothing happening in Mokokchung. Even the SBI’s CSR activities in Mokokchung have dried up.
As estimated by Rio, corporate India has spent around Rs.1.25 lakh crores in CSR obligations in the last seven years, out of which he says a miniscule 0.006 percent was spent in Nagaland. However, we have to know that every corporate house has its own CSR policy and they don’t spend their money just like that. There is a system and we must fit into the system to attract CSR funding.
As such, it is time for us to learn from others, maybe even beg them to teach us, as to how CSR funding takes place. We have much to learn from organizations like Eleutheros Christian Society, The Entrepreneurs Associates and YouthNet, among other things, on how to attract CSR funding.