CSR SERVICES : INDIA
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Following the introduction of the India Companies Act, 2013 which makes it mandatory for a large number of companies to engage in CSR activities, Wedge Consulting set up a specialized unit to handle this obligation. Wedge has a CSR team whose expertise includes gender equity and empowerment, human rights, environmental sustainability, health, vocational training and education, amongst others. The unit is headed by Teena Amrit Gill, a senior development consultant from the Institute of Development Studies, University of Sussex, UK. Teena Amrit Gill has worked in the field of CSR in India for over 10 years. With more than 3 Million NGOs in India, finding operations to finance that are transparent, purposeful and compliant is a challenge that requires experience and insight into the very specific world of the development sector. The Wedge team, with decades of expertise in the development sector will assist corporates in investing their money in organisations that are impactful and transparent, and will help them through this partnership. |
In partnership with leading international consulting firm Utopies. Utopies was created in 1993 to encourage businesses to integrate social and environmental issues into their strategy. Utopies puts a positive face on change, by accelerating change through its think tank and consulting activities, and mobilizing its network of the best experts in the world, pioneering enterprises and key players. LOCAL FOOTPRINT® shows very realistically how a local economy operates. It reveals how a metropolitan area, state, province, region or country reacts to a monetary flow. Moreover, it brings out working hypotheses for optimizing local economic benefits. This exclusive product measures the economic impact of any business, supply chain, industry, infrastructure, event or investment project in any local, sub-national or regional area in 186 countries. |
CSR services offered:
Need Assessment Studies - a combination of qualitative and quantitative surveys to understand the needs of local communities in the areas where corporates have their operations (such as education, health, vocational training, etc.).
Strategizing - to find the most appropriate project for the corporate, NGOs/CSOs (civil society organisations) and local communities – keeping in account the business environment and the local context.
Partnership - The processes required to partner corporates with NGOs, ensuring that both parties' needs are addressed and incorporated. This requires keeping regular two-way dialogue and communication alive and empowering NGOs and grassroots organisations by ensuring sustainability, ownership (of projects) and self-sufficiency.
Project Design - defining the project with tangible deliverables within planned time-lines and defined impacts.
Monitoring & Evaluation - to ensure the project is on track, identify problems which might cause delays, and assess overall sustainability. Includes Impact Assessment to understand Change.
Communicating - through reports, websites and short films/clips with various stakeholders to report progress, showcase CSR programmes and allow for feedback.
Reporting - according to the international and Indian Government standards required to be followed: Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), UN Global Compact, National Voluntary Guidelines (NVGs).
What we will deliver:
- Advisory: compliance with Companies Act 2013
- Assistance in project selection
- Pre-auditing of selected projects
- Monitoring and Evaluation of projects
- Yearly Impact Assessment Reports
- Production of reports/films/websites
CSR in the Companies Act 2013
- The CSR provisions of the Indian Companies Act (2013) is applicable to companies with an annual turnover of 1,000 crore INR and more, a net worth of 500 crore INR and more, or a net profit of five crore INR and more.
- A company only gets exempted of these obligations if it does not fulfill those criteria for 3 consecutive years.
- Since FY 2015-16, the Act makes it mandatory for companies (including subsidiaries of foreign entities and project offices) to:
- Spend at least 2% of the previous 3 years average Net Profit (before tax, excluding profit arising from overseas subsidiaries) on CSR operations.
- Set up a CSR committee with at least 3 members. Listed companies have to include one independent member.
- Create, if required, a dedicated trust, society or company to undertake CSR activities.
- Draft a yearly CSR report and publicise their actions on their website.
- The Act recommends that operations be geographically focused on the region in which the company operates.