BP, a multibillion-dollar energy and petrochemicals company, has been largely responsible for the extreme environmental degradation that has affected Nigerian communities for decades. With, “over two million barrels of oil produced per day” and thousands of miles of pipeline laid through swamps, the foreseeable environmental cost has taken a devastating toll on the Nigerian people. It seems BP’s social responsibility to the local people and environment in which they operate has been shortchanged – to say the least. In a 2006 report international and local environmental groups concluded that, “546 million gallons of oil have been spilled into the Niger Delta over the last five decades” leaving locals destitute and unable to utilize the once plentiful resources of the Nigerian swamp lands to sustain themselves. Market woman Hannah Baage exemplifies the product of BP’s inability to practice business ethics as she divulges, “There is BP oil in my body”.
BP has failed to find the crucial balance between profitability and ethical responsibility while accommodating all its stakeholders. A successful business must be able to engage positively with the various factions affected by the business – especially as the business becomes larger and more influential. Even a company as sizeable and powerful as “BP” cannot afford to ignore Business Ethics and should practice it in all divisions of its business (marketing, financing, human resource, etc).
Case study used:
Far From Gulf, a Spill Scourge 5 Decades Old
Published: June 16, 2010
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/17/world/africa/17nigeria.html?_r=0