CSR Visibility, Community Trust and the Fairness Gap: Host-Community Evaluations of Seplat Energy in Sapele, Nigeria

Abstract

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is increasingly presented as a means of strengthening relationships between extractive companies and their host communities. Yet the visibility of social investment need not imply equitable access to its benefits. This article examines that tension in residents’ evaluations of Seplat Energy in Sapele, Nigeria. A cross-sectional, mixed-methods study combined 390 usable questionnaires from 400 distributed (97.5% response) with eight purposively selected stakeholder interviews. The survey examined perceived CSR activities, exposure, satisfaction, community support and criteria of evaluation. Health (reported mean = 3.32), education (3.28) and empowerment (3.26) attracted higher recognition than infrastructure (3.21) and environmental activity (3.19). Overall evaluations were favourable (reported composite mean = 3.18), but perceived fairness of benefit distribution received a substantially lower rating (2.90). Respondents linked CSR to improved corporate–community relations (reported composite mean = 3.28), while interviews qualified these assessments with concerns about uneven access and decision-making. The dissertation’s published Pearson correlation (r = .87) was calculated from aggregate item means and cannot substantiate respondent-level association; it is therefore excluded from inferential claims. Integrating stakeholder theory with the literature on legitimacy and social licence, the article argues that CSR recognition and relational approval coexist with unresolved distributive concerns. Transparent beneficiary selection, meaningful community participation and independent outcome evaluation are necessary to distinguish reputational gains from equitable development.