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This study examines the effects of disaggregated corporate social responsibility (CSR) practices on the economic wellbeing of host communities in Tanzania’s mining sector. Drawing on stakeholder theory, the study adopts a quantitative cross-sectional design using primary survey data collected from 393 respondents in three gold-mining regions - Geita, Mara, and Kagera, with 332 valid responses analysed using SmartPLS 4. The analysis focuses on the effects of economic, legal, ethical, and philanthropic CSR practices on community-level economic outcomes. The findings indicate that ethical, legal, and philanthropic CSR practices have positive and statistically significant effects on economic wellbeing, while economic CSR practices are not statistically significant. These findings suggest that while legal CSR practices contribute positively to economic wellbeing, their influence remains relatively modest, indicating that compliance-based interventions alone may not generate substantial household-level improvements. In contrast, responsible business conduct and community-oriented investments appear to exert a stronger and more direct influence on local development outcomes. The study contributes to the literature by providing empirical support for disaggregating CSR into distinct dimensions when assessing development outcomes in extractive industries and highlights the need to move beyond aggregate CSR measures toward more differentiated and context-sensitive analyses. From a policy and practice perspective, the findings underscore the importance of aligning CSR initiatives with community priorities and strengthening implementation frameworks to enhance their developmental impact in resource-dependent economies.

Unlawful mining poses a significant global challenge. It contributes to environmental degradation, corruption, and exploitation, with Africa being disproportionately affected. This qualitative, exploratory study investigated the factors that drive unlawful mining in Ekurhuleni, Gauteng, South Africa, in response to growing concerns about its substantial economic and social impacts. Through semi-structured interviews, 26 purposively selected participants from diverse backgrounds, including law enforcement and key stakeholders, provided varied perspectives. The findings consistently highlight unemployment and poverty as primary drivers that compel individuals to engage in illegal mining activities. The participants also emphasized the inherent dangers faced by illegal miners and the complex socio-economic dynamics that perpetuate this illicit enterprise. Critically, existing policing strategies were perceived as inadequate. The study concludes that effectively mitigating unlawful mining in Ekurhuleni requires comprehensive approaches that address underlying socio-economic vulnerabilities and foster active community involvement. This underscores the need for coordinated efforts to reduce its impacts and support local safety and development.

This research investigates the influence of project management practices (PMP) on sustainable development among oil-producing villages in the Ilaje Local Government Area of Ondo State, Nigeria. This study examines the impact of Project Management Practices (PMPs)—including planning, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation—on the sustainable development (SD) dimensions of the environmental, economic, and social aspects of inhabitants in oil-producing areas within Ilaje LGA, Ondo State. Data were gathered from 154 household heads through structured questionnaires using a survey methodology and analysed with descriptive and inferential statistics, including multiple linear regression. The findings indicated a modest level of PMP, with Mean Index Scores between 2.14 and 2.44, signifying restricted community engagement. The results of the multiple linear regression indicate that the construct and implementation significantly impacted all three dimensions of sustainability: environmental, economic, and social. This indicates that financial benefits are received by the residents of the host community, notwithstanding their limited participation as casual workers during project execution. Nevertheless, oil companies exhibit minimal care for the aspirations of the populace concerning the impact of their projects on the local environment.  The study's geographic limitations restrict generalisability, indicating the necessity for further extensive comparative research. It advises oil companies to use inclusive project management frameworks that improve stakeholder engagement, therefore promoting sustainable socio-economic development and environmental stewardship in host communities

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) practices of privately owned mining companies have been argued to create benefits to communities’ wellbeing in areas of their operation. However, little is known on the CSR of partly owned government mining companies. Therefore, this paper ought to: examined the contribution of CSR practices of the North Mara Gold Mine in Tanzania to the wellbeing of communities living around the mine. Specifically, it examined and compared levels of household wellbeing before and after the implementation of CSR practices. The study used cross sectional research design and involved 358 households which were selected using systematic random sampling method. The wellbeing index was used to measure levels of wellbeing. Besides, the Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test was used to compare wellbeing levels before and after the implementation of the CSR practices. The results revealed that the CSR practices of the North Mara Gold Mine company enabled people to own improved quality housing and valuable assets. Also, the household wellbeing index score was significantly higher after the implementation of the CSR practices. There was a significant difference in wellbeing levels (p<0.001) before and after the implementation of CSR practices. It is recommended that CSR plans to be integrated into company business operations and carefully monitored, evaluated and strictly audited regularly for effective community development.

The CSR practices of privately owned mining businesses have the capacity to foster the development of communities residing in proximity to the mining operations. Nevertheless, there is limited knowledge regarding the corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives undertaken by mining businesses in Tanzania that are partially owned by the government. The focus of this study was to analyze the corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives implemented by the North Mara Gold Mine in Tanzania, which is partially controlled by the government. The primary aims of this study were to assess the level of community awareness regarding Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and to analyze the CSR initiatives performed by North Mara Gold Mine among the surrounding regions. The research had a cross-sectional design and included a sample of 358 houses, which were chosen through the utilization of a systematic random selection method. The data collection process involved the utilization of many methods, including household surveys, key informant interviews, focus group talks, and documentary reviews. The data underwent examination through the utilization of descriptive statistics and content analysis techniques. The primary outcomes of the investigation indicated that a majority of the participants exhibited knowledge regarding corporate social responsibility (CSR), and demonstrated the ability to articulate and elucidate the CSR initiatives implemented by North Mara Gold Mine within their respective localities. The findings indicate that the key informants have the ability to articulate corporate social responsibility as the responsibilities of companies towards the local community residing in the vicinity of the mining operation, with the objective of enhancing the overall welfare of the community. Additionally, it was discovered that the North Mara Gold Mine has been actively engaging in the implementation of corporate social responsibility initiatives. These initiatives primarily involve providing support to the local populations residing in close proximity to the mine. The support encompasses several areas such as education, infrastructure development (including roads and sanitary facilities), healthcare, and employment opportunities. Hence, it is advisable for mining enterprises to include corporate social responsibility (CSR) strategies into their business operations and establish a dedicated CSR Foundation to oversee and manage CSR initiatives.

The study used a qualitative approach to gather data from the participants through the interview and focused group discussions (FGD).  The participants consisting of 30 for the interview and 11 for the FGD were asked to answer the questions using a semi-structured, open-ended interview guide.  The results of the interview and FGD were carefully examined using thematic analysis. The results show that as to the level of awareness of the host communities regarding the different SMDP of the mining companies, there is strong evidence on the high level of awareness of the respondents as to human resource development, enterprise development, assistance to infrastructure development, access to education, access to health services; and protections to respect of socio-cultural values. As to the level of agreement of the impact of the different SMDP implement by the mining companies, the respondents confirmed the positive effects of these programs in relation to education, health, social and cultural, and economic indicators. As to the perception of the respondents on the sustainability of the SMDP, except for the completeness of documents available in the designated SMDP offices in the communities, the respondents confirmed and agreed on the sustainability of the SMDP in terms of stakeholder groups relationship; company financial and management capacity; and compliance with the legal requirements.

The objective of this research is to provide the necessary framework and recommendations to help just completed Corporate Social Responsibility Programs of mining companies and eventually improve their existing implementation of SDMP for the benefit of the host communities. The researcher used the mixed-method research design wherein both the qualitative and quantitative approaches were utilized to better understand and validate the results. For the quantitative approach, survey questionnaires were administered to 376 respondents from the host communities during site visits. On the other hand, the qualitative approach used to interview and FGD to the various community representatives of the same host communities. The results revealed that the respondents are aware of the 1.5% budget of mining companies for SMDP and mining companies have adequate and professional personnel that run the operations of SMDP projects. However, it was found that mining companies have an incomplete set of SMDP documents kept in their offices. The results also revealed that the respondents of the five Barangays have strongly agreed that there are social issues raised against the mining project but they disagreed on the stakeholder groups are satisfied with the process.