The role of corporate social responsibility in promoting community development for the Hormuud Salaam Foundation in Mogadishu, Somalia

Corporate Social Responsibility increasingly shapes development outcomes in fragile and conflict-affected contexts where public institutions face capacity constraints. This study investigates the relationship between Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives and perceived community development outcomes using evidence from the Hormuud Salaam Foundation in Mogadishu, Somalia. Guided by stakeholder theory, the analysis focuses on three CSR dimensions: education and healthcare, job creation, and humanitarian and emergency support. A quantitative, cross-sectional, descriptive-correlational design was employed. Data were collected through structured questionnaires from 80 respondents, including managers, employees, and beneficiaries of the Foundation. Descriptive statistics and Pearson correlation analyses were used to examine associations between CSR dimensions and community development indicators. The results reveal strong and statistically significant positive relationships across all CSR dimensions. Humanitarian and emergency support demonstrated the strongest association with perceived community development (r = 0.877, p < 0.01), reflecting the importance of crisis response in Somalia’s fragile environment. Job creation initiatives were also strongly associated with community development (r = 0.860, p < 0.01), particularly in relation to economic empowerment and livelihood improvement, although perceptions of unemployment reduction were moderated by broader structural constraints. Education and healthcare initiatives showed a strong positive relationship with community development outcomes (r = 0.797, p < 0.01), highlighting their contribution to human-capital development, while concerns regarding equitable access to scholarships were identified. The study contributes empirical evidence from a conflict-affected setting, extending stakeholder theory by illustrating how domestic corporate foundations can complement weak state capacity. The findings underscore the importance of integrating humanitarian assistance with long-term development-oriented CSR strategies to enhance resilience, legitimacy, and sustainable community outcomes.