Conference Overview and Programme

The 2014 BEN Africa Conference deals with inequality as one of the most widely discussed global and ethical challenges of our time, even so in South Africa. We’ll be looking at the empirical dimensions of the issue and interrogate the root causes thereof. We’ll discuss the impact of inequality on a sustainable future for both companies and communities. We’ll consider the role of educators, business, business schools, government and citizens in shaping a more just and ethical society. This is indeed no soft issue; not being dealt it will have hard outcomes.

As a conference participant you will gain the opportunity to be part of the conversation. You will engage with thought leaders, have the opportunity to participate in conversations of your choice and visit with other delegates sites where inequality is either vividly visible or being constructively addressed. Apart from extending your network of people who are as committed to development of a just and sustainable society as you are, you will be strengthened and encouraged by what you will learn from their knowledge and experience. Attending this event will put you in the forefront of being better equipped to give leadership on an issue that will most certainly affect your business, organisation or community negatively should we fail to act on what we know about it at present.

The conference programme will be updated as keynote speakers and panel members confirm their participation and papers get approved to be presented. At this stage we are already excited to announce the following:DO

BEN-Africa-Conference-2014-Provisional-Programme1

30 September 2014

14.00: BEN-Africa Conference Project Team

1 October 2014

8.30 Registration

9.00 Welcome and Introduction

Prof Arnold Smit: President of BEN-Africa – Welcome message

Prof Piet Naude (Director, University of Stellenbosch Business School) -Why should a business school bother itself with inequality?

10.00 Refreshments

10.30 Keynote address: Prof Servaas van der Berg (Bureau for Economic Research at Stellenbosch University) -Income Inequality in South Africa: understanding its nature and future prospects.

11.15 Keynote address: Rhoda Kadalie – A social activist’s view of the interface between poverty and inequality

12.00 Paper Sessions:

Room 216: Susan Hall and Minka Woermann; Department of Philosophy, Stellenbosch University, South Africa; ‘From inequality to equality: evaluating normative justifications for affirmative action as redress’

USB Boardroom: Leon van Vuuren (Ethics SA), HK Donaldson (ABSA) and RM Syffert (ABSA): ‘Organisational ethical reputation as a decision-making factor in job seekers’ organsational choice’

USB Brewery: Suzette Viviers; Department of Business Management, Stellenbosch University, South Africa; ‘Are South African shareholders neglecting their responsibility to address the growing wage gap?’

USB-ED Boardroom 1: Evangelos Mantzaris and Pregala Pillay (Anti-Corruption Centre for Education and Research of Stellenbosch University (ACCERUS), South Africa) ‘On ethics, inequality, corruption and the middle class: the case of South Africa’

USB-ED Boardroom 2: Wilson Muyinda Mande (Nkumba University, Uganda): ‘Employee rewards as distributive justice: the case of primary school teachers in Uganda’

12:45 Lunch

13.30 Learning journey to local communities near Cape Town: Face to face with inequality in healthcare, education, housing and unemployment

16.00 BEN-Africa Exco meeting

2 October 2014

9.00 Keynote speaker: Nick Spaull – Quality Education in an Unequal Society

Mr Nic Spaull, a specialist in the economics of education at the Research on Socio-economic Policy unit at the University of Stellenbosch.

10:30 Refreshments

11.00 Panel discussion: Business and business education – Stretching or bridging inequality?

Panellists: Prof Mollie Painter (ABIS), Prof Juan Eligido (Lagos Business School, Pan-Atlantic University, Nigeria),

Dr Ruben Richards (Cape Chamber of Commerce and Industry) Mr Frik Landman (USB Executive Development, Ltd)

Moderator: Prof Deon Rossouw (Ethics SA)

12:30 Lunch

13.30 Paper Sessions:

Room 216 Schalk Engelbrecht; KPMG Forensic, South Africa; ‘Why the world is still unequal: on the apparatuses of justification and interpassivity’

USB Boardroom: Thelma Louw; University of South Africa (Unisa); ‘The ethical maturity of the leadership of South African business schools – are they contributing to sustainability in business ethics education?’

USB Brewery: Cynthia Therese Schoeman; Ethics Monitoring & Management Services (Pty) Ltd, South Africa; ‘The role of business ethics in reducing inequality’

USB-ED Boardroom 1: Johannes Kinfu; MIDROC Ethiopia, Training and Development Department, ‘Ethics and entrepreneurship’

USB-ED Boardroom 2: Patrick Giddy: ‘Proportionalist Reasoning in Business Ethics’

14.15 Paper Sessions:

Room 216: Deon Rossouw; Ethics South Africa; ‘Africans perceptions of Chinese business in Africa’ (co-authored with (Sofie Geerts and Namhla Xinwa)

USB Boardoom: Juan Manuel Elegido; Lagos Business School, Pan-Atlantic University, Nigeria; ‘An Exploration of the Mutuality Principle in Marketing Ethics’

USB Brewery: Daniel Tarus; Department of Accounting & Finance, Kenya; ‘Gender diversity in the Boardroom: Does it affect strategic change and firm performance in Kenya?’ (co-authored with Paul Chepkuto)

USB-ED Boardroom 1: Colin V. Habberton; University of Stellenbosch Business School, South Africa; ‘The responsibility of investing: the role of governance in institutional investor decision-making’

15.00 Refreshments

15.30 Keynote speakers and conversation

Prof. Christoph Stueckelberger (Executive Director and Founder of Globethics.net) ): Principles on Equality and Inequality for a Sustainable Economy

Daniel Malan (Centre for Corporate Governance in Africa, Stellenbosch Business School): A new social covenant. During this discussion the speakers will refer to
this document
.