Business Diplomacy

Leveraging Business Diplomacy

Lichia Yiu & Raymond Saner ; (2022), “Leveraging Business Diplomacy”, in The Role of Multinational Enterprises Supporting the United Nations’ SDGs, edited by John McIntyre, Silvester Ivanaj and Vera Ivanaj, Edward Elgard,pp 190-215)

This book chapter suggests that MNEs should take into consideration the use of business diplomacy in order to successfully manage the growing number of standards of required good business practice as well as to identify opportunities for business investment and participation in the SDGs. MNEs need the knowledge and competence of business diplomats to avoid failures and loss of reputational capital, such as Nestlé and its baby milk formula or Shell Company’s misguided oil and gas exploration in Nigeria (Saner and Yiu, 2000).

Business Diplomacy in Emerging Markets: Intersection of Roles between States and Multinationals

Doudou Sidibé & Raymond Saner, (2017) “Business Diplomacy in Emerging Markets:

Intersection of Roles between States and Multinationals”, in H. Ruel, International Business Diplomacy (Advanced Series in Management, Vol. 18), pp 109-122, Emerald Publishing Limited, Bingley

This chapter describes and discusses the growing intersection of roles and functions between states and multinationals in the field of diplomacy and how diplomatic skills are needed to support transnational companies in their search for markets in emerging countries.

Webinar: Professor Raymond Saner : "Business Diplomacy"

Raymond Saner: “Infrastructure investment in Africa: Mainstreaming the SDGs to ensure cooperation between Economic, Commercial, Business and NGO Diplomacy”

Since the agreements on the 2030 Agenda and the Financing of development (AAAA) agreement in 2015, the member countries of the United Nations have agreed that domestic and foreign direct investment are expected to be aligned with the 2030 Agenda.
The 17 SDGs of the 2030 Agenda are supposed to be achieved in an integrated manner focusing at the same time on social, economic and environmental sustainability and be implemented in a transparent, inclusive and participatory manner.

In order to achieve these 17 goals and guiding principles, very substantial financial investment will be required. According to the 2014 World Investment Report (WIR) by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), approximately 4 trillion USD will be required every year in developing countries alone for the SDGs to be achieved by2030.

Lichia Yiu; “Role of Business Diplomacy Where Economic Diplomacy Stops –A Critical Reflection of the Belt and Road Initiative in Africa”

Historically, China had prior experience in interacting with Africa. In the first half of 15^th Century, Admiral Zhen reached Madagascar already with his fleet of “treasure boats”. Traders from the neighboring countries and dominions joint the fleet in order to benefit from the trading opportunities. This was the first official trade mission by the Chinese Ming Emperor. Such missions continued for more than 15 years and came to a halt. The Belt and Road Initiative is a systematic effort of the Chinese government to foster a stronger economic and political link with its neighbours in the Southeast Asia and beyond reaching the shore of Africa once again. In the geopolitical context of the post cold war period and the accelerated economic and technological catching up by China, such a concerted effort like BRI is causing concerns and anxieties in many quarters. Wherever there is a Chinese international trade policy, Chinese companies follow. Interactions with the host countries, either the community or the labour force or suppliers, is achieving mixed results.