B Mirror Desk : 615.96 crore taka was spent on corporate social responsibility (CSR) by the nation’s banks in 2024. Compared to the first half of the year, banks’ CSR spending has somewhat declined during the past six months. Nonetheless, throughout the past six months, spending on health, the environment, and climate change adaptation and mitigation has gone up.

These numbers were revealed in a Bangladesh Bank report.

According to the central bank’s report, the banks spent 615.96 crore taka on corporate social responsibility or CSR in 2024. In the first six months of the year, i.e. from January to June, the banks spent 309.19 crore taka on CSR. And in the six months from July to December, the expenditure was 306.76 crore taka. Accordingly, the CSR expenditure at the end of the year decreased by 20.43 crore taka compared to the first six months of the year.

A review of sector-wise CSR expenditure during the period under discussion showed that the country’s banks spent 44.47 crore taka on CSR in the education sector in the six months from July to December 2024. From January to June of the same year, CSR expenditure in this sector was 63.64 crore taka. During the period under discussion, CSR expenditure in the education sector decreased by 19.17 crore taka. However, despite the decrease in expenditure in the education sector, CSR expenditure of banks in the health, environment and climate change mitigation and adaptation sectors increased.

From July to December of last year, banks spent 82.99 crore taka on CSR in the health sector. From January to June of the same year, CSR expenditure in this sector was 71.98 crore taka. During the period under discussion, CSR expenditure in the health sector increased by about 11 crore taka.

Banks invested 15.2 crore taka in corporate social responsibility (CSR) in the areas of environmental protection and climate change adaptation between July and December of 2024. Banks invested 7.34 crore taka in this sector’s CSR for the first half of the year, which ran from January to June. The amount spent on CSR in this industry has also grown dramatically. The amount spent on CSR in other industries has somewhat declined.

Compared to Tk 166.23 crore in the first half (January to June), CSR spending in other sectors was Tk 164.29 crore from July to December. But in 2024, six banks made no CSR investments. Stateowned Basic Bank, private sector Bangladesh Commerce Bank, National Bank, Padma Bank, and specialized Bangladesh Krishi Bank and Rajshahi Krishi Unnayan Bank are among the banks.