The Influence of Private-Corporation Operationalized Large Scale Copper Mining on Local Development: A Case of Konkola Copper Mines (KCM) in Chingola District of Zambia.

Zambia’s main economic activity of Large Scale Copper Mining, which accounts for 75% of foreign exchange, is guided by policies that date back to its days of colonialisation under the British. The attempt to spur local development and livelihood improvement by the state, during the Post-independence period of nationalized mining industry, via subsidized social services and the incorporation of CSR yielded negative results due to state inefficiencies. The attained debts in attempt to sustain a failing mining industry led to Structural Adjustment Programs (SAPS) that encouraged privatization. This study highlights that the indicated growth in the mining industry since 1991 is not matched by livelihood improvements for the local communities where mining occurs mainly due to the insistence of some private corporations to adopting CSR inclusive business strategies in a context that lacks the proper guidance of CSR policies. Points of focus in this paper include the exploration of how business through private corporation in large scale copper mining has transformed livelihood, the understanding of mechanisms employed by corporations in an attempt to meet the expectations of other stakeholders in mining (especially the local community whose livelihoods are directly affected by mining activities) and the examination of how frequent shifts in the government policies on large scale copper mining have harmonised and allowed inclusiveness of the local community into the value chain. The findings from this study show that, social economic development obligations in the public- private partnerships strategy are met through formulation of policies to guide private corporations and also through implementation of CSR initiative. Though in most cases implemented on a smaller scale, CSR is a useful tool to spur development, which in turn improve the standard of living for the local community. For effective livelihood transformation, corporations implement their CSR activities through contextually appropriate mechanisms and structures that call for participation among all stakeholders at company and local level. Fair inclusion of the local community into the value chain is ensured by the corporations close monitoring of developmental projects done under the all-level (national, provincial, district and local), non-politically affiliated institutional structures set up by the state.