Corporate Council on Africa

The Corporate Council on Africa (CCA), established in 1993, is a non-governmental organisation that focuses on strengthening commercial relationships between the United States and African countries. The CCA website quotes that "The Corporate Council on Africa (CCA) is at the forefront of strengthening and facilitating the commercial relationship between the United States and the African continent. CCA works closely with governments, multilateral groups and business to improve the African continent's trade and investment climate, and to raise the profile of Africa in the US business community." Critically the CCA initiates programs that will raise Africa's investment profile in the US by developing business relations, and exchanges of information and ideas. The CCA heavily supports the promotion of private sector devlopment in Africa as an advantageous approach to develpment for both parties. According to the website "CCA members believe that Africa's future success depends upon the ability of its entrepreneurs and business people to create and retain wealth through private enterprise. American corporations and private individuals can contribute most effectively by building partnership and reaching out to the African private sector in the areas that America knows best: private enterprise, investment capital, technology transfer and management." In latter years the company has been growing significantly. Since Stephen Hayes became president of the Corporate Council on Africa in 1999 its membership increased from 86 members to more than 200 in 2004. Indeed Hayes has led the Council into new fields of activity and stated in 2004 that the "more robust markets in Africa mean more opportunities for American businesses."

Members

The CCA works closely with governments, multilateral groups and businesses to improve trade and investment and raise the stature of Africa in the US business community. Essentially the CCA is a non-partisan membership organisation that has nearly 200 associated US companies. The CCA itself is a member of the Business Action for Africa, a corporation that also includes the Commonwealth Business Council, and British Consultants and Construction Bureau. However some of the companies associated with CCA include:

• Trans Atlantic Corporation: Trading and business development company specialising in the procurement and distribution of commercial trucks, public transportation, construction equipment, agricultural commodities, barges and fishing vessels for companies worldwide. Through their affiliation with the CCA they recently completed a transaction with a company in Nigeria to help build oil transportation infrastructure.
• Moving Water Industries: A manufacturing company specialising in the design of hydraulically driven, high volume water pumps where products are supplied in over 50 Countries throughout the world.
• Manchester Trade Ltd: A consulting firm that focuses in international trade and investment issues, assisting private comapnies and governments to maximise advantages from free trade for their products and services.
• The American and African Business Women's Alliance (AABWA): An organisation "whose members represent business and professional women from Africa and America engaged in trade and investment." This company seeks to enhance trade and investment by promoting business partnerships within African countries and the US.

Corporate Council on Africa: Full List of Members

Media Partners

As the pendulum of the neo-liberal market swings increasingly towards privatisation and away from public services, the need for corporations to provide corporate social responsibility (CSR) is increasinging intangibly. CSR does not however run in conjunction with the fundamental mandate of corporations - that is to make money (see Hinkel, 2002). Thus as a response to CSR many corporations go to increased lengths to promote their business in a positive light to the general public, commonly through the media. The extent in which CSR is a key feature to the corporation of CCA is demonstrated by the significant links it has with varying media partners. The CCA has close links to a number of media groups, their media partners include:

AllAfrica Global Media: The largest electronic distributor of African news and information in the world. The website, allAfrica.com, posts over 1,000 stories daily in English and French, offers over 900,000 articles, and has over 12 million monthly page views and over 100 million monthly "hits". In addition to this the media group has alliances with informational technology companies such as Radio France International and the BBC.

IFC Reports: A media group that produces special international reports distributed in many prestigious magazines, including The Economist; a magazine is "sold each week, printed on three continents and distributed across major world cities...(reaching) the most influential readers the world over, from senior politicians to corporate leaders.

Summit Communications: A company "dedicated to raising the profile of the world's most dynamic emerging markets"

UnitedWorld: Known publisher of USA today and a company that aims at maximizing 'positive exposure' of the CCA.

Universal News: A company where themes of: expanding trade relationships, building infrastructure, removing barriers, ensuring full participation in the global economy and identifies areas of opportunity prevail.

In addition to these media groups mentioned the CCA also has an affiliation with The Africa Journal, a publication that aims to raise Africa’s profile as a business destination and to highlight CCA members success in Africa. It can be seen from here that the CCA has great potential to advertise and promote itself as a corporation that offers opportunity to the global world and gives economic benefits and trade opportunities, and is able to manipulate public opinion to advance its economic strategy.