**3.4. Oman and Kuwait**

Oman is an emerging mixed market economy that also highly relies on the oil and gas sector with a salience of joint ventures with international corporations [27]. Private sector partners along with the civil society are expected to collaborate with the government to maintain national competitiveness and equality. The state has set local development targets through the national socio-economic development plan (Vision 2020), launched in 1996; these collaborations are also in line with national inclusion, where all sectors are expected to be involved in steps for development planning [27].

Kuwait has a large oil economy and therefore the recent oil production cuts have affected economic growth [10]. The government is attending to this issue through plans of economic diversification; a privatization plan was put in place to shift dependence from the oil and gas sector. However, the state legal framework and enforcement is weak; there are no CG laws put in place and company regulations lack any reference to stakeholder's rights [28]. Due to its legal context, it is up to the firm to participate in socially responsible activities such as human and labor rights. A study on CG practices in businesses in Kuwait suggests the low level of development in that field with a salient lack of accountability, disclosure, shareholders' and stakeholders' rights. While some companies studied had assigned a board committee, others do not even have a selected board committee to look over governance issues [28]. There is no legal framework for social responsibility issues; however, some large sized companies exhibit some kind of participation in CSR practices [28]. This would be more organized and enhanced with well-structured legal regulations for accountability, CG, and social responsibility. Moreover, setting down regulations will be in line with the government's current privatization plan as proper CG laws with clear reference to the rights of shareholders and stakeholders would encourage investment and economy diversification.

**4.2. United Arab Emirates**

**4.3. Qatar**

closure of socially responsible behavior [25].

**4.4. Bahrain and Oman**

Philanthropy has always been practiced in UAE through *Zakat*. This has also been institutionalized and organizations are usually compliant with religious doctrines and practices. Due to the prevalent endowment behavior, organizations believe in their responsibilities towards society, apart from their shareholders [20]. The religious practices are not centralized and approached merely in an informal and unorganized manner. Unlike Saudi Arabia, a *Zakat* tax is not enforced or collected by the state. However, some have argued against the effectiveness of a centralized *Zakat* collection practice; such system does little to better the living standards of the needy [20]. CSR is very different from *Zakat* although philanthropy is included as one of the secondary pillars of CSR practice. *Zakat* has a spiritual end whereas CSR ought to be targeted towards social equality and sustainable development. CSR also includes concepts of preservation of resources, sustainable practices, and involving stakeholders in business operations and strategies [21].

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Qatar also has salient Religion-CSR Logics as it is an Islamic country with high social, cultural, and religious expectations of firms participating in philanthropy; this ultimately influenced the introduction of CSR in the professional realm and encouraged company participation to meet their social responsibility expectations [23]. Community involvement of businesses in Qatar has always been prevalent through donations such as to orphanages, elderly homes, and particularly sports [29]. Religious groups in Qatar also act as pressure groups on companies to get involved in the annual *Zakat* tradition [24, 25]. These groups account to a significant portion of investors in the country and may choose to invest in companies that show interest in social development and participate with annual philanthropy [24]. Islamic values need to be present and emphasized by companies in Qatar to maintain legitimacy and survival; through enhanced communication with local groups and communities, and transparent dis-

Bahrain is a small GCC country and has a dearth of research on CSR practices by corporations. However, one study focused on social responsibility reporting of Islamic financial institutions based in Bahrain. The results show a thorough understanding of CSR as the banks are required by law to produce an annual report, the Shari'a Supervisory board report, to assert their commitment to Islamic teachings [30]. There is evidence of voluntary philanthropic practices in Islamic financial institutions which signifies a commitment to social welfare issues in the country [31]. Similar to other countries in GCC, Oman is a Muslim nation characterized with philanthropic practices to low income groups, which has contributed to the assimilation of CSR concepts [27]. There is evidence of a merger in Oman of traditional philanthropic traditions with stra-

tegic CSR practices integrating economic, social and environmental challenges [27].

*Social responsibility is present in the GCC in Islamic financial institutions as well.*

*Islamic religion in the GCC countries views social responsibility as an obligation to business activity mainly through the Zakat tax. However, the Zakat tax was practiced way before the CSR concept came to light and is considered as only one of the secondary pillars of CSR practices which is philanthropic.* 

*GGC governments are playing an integral role in putting the basic infrastructure and groundwork for securing a path towards a sustainable future in the region. Some GCC countries are trying to enhance and monitor CSR practices by diversifying national economy and supporting the private sector and civil societies, by launching philanthropic programs to aid sustainable development and reducing poverty and by establishing international networks to help other low-income countries. However, not all governments are as much involved, some are still lacking laws that enforce CSR practices and legal regulations for accountability.*
