THE INFLUENCE OF
RELIGION ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
Religion
plays an important role in the process of social and economic development. In
most societies, especially in developing countries, religious beliefs strongly
shape the political and economic institutions, and hence either hamper or spur
overall development. However, despite its potentially important role for
prosperity, religion has been a neglected area in development policy and
development cooperation. This project thus seeks to investigate empirically
what conditions of religion stimulate or retard sustainable development. Given
the relevance for development, it also seeks to provide policy recommendation
for development policy and development co-operation.
Seven Ways
Religious Freedom Contributes to Sustainable Development
The
Religious Freedom & Business Foundation is publishing a new series of
analysis and data on the connection between religious freedom and sustainable
development.
Article
18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights defines
Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) as follows: “Everyone has the right to
freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to
change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with
others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in
teaching, practice, worship and observance.”
An
oft used definition for Sustainable
Development is: “Development that meets the needs of the
present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their
own needs” (Our Common Future, Oxford University
Press, 1987).
So, what might be the connection
between these seemingly very different concepts?
Of
course, social dynamics are complex and causal mechanism are multifaceted,
and religious freedom is not a silver bullet or secret solution to the
world’s ills. Nevertheless, the role of religious freedom – and its
manifestations in interfaith and intercultural understanding and
cooperation – are often overlooked contributors to positive
socio-economic outcomes and sustainable development.
There is no
doubt that strong markets and strong societies go hand in hand, and good
business is about good relationships. But even the most principled and socially
responsible companies are challenged to thrive in communities marked by
instability and conflict, to find skilled labour where adequate education is
lacking and where discrimination is present, or to withstand natural disasters
and changing climates.
The
following research summary indicates that religious freedom
contributes to sustainable development – and its underlying socio-economic
foundations – in a number of ways, including (1) fostering respect for
differing faiths and beliefs, including people with no particular
faith; (2) helping to reduce corruption by allowing faith-based ethics to
be voiced; (3) engendering peace by defusing religious tensions
thereby reducing religion-related violence and conflict; (4)
encouraging broader freedoms; (5) developing the economy as religious
groups play a measurable role in the human and social development of
countries; (6) overcoming the over-regulation associated with such things
as coercive blasphemy laws; and (7) multiplying trust among
employees whose faith and beliefs are respected.
First, religious
freedom fosters respect by protecting something that more
than eight-in-ten people worldwide, 84 percent according to a recent Pew Research study, identify with a
religious faith – and this figure is growing. Indeed, according to a 2015
global study published in Demographic Research,
social scientists were wrong to predict the demise of religion. The study and
its related Pew Research Center report show that
people who are religiously unaffiliated (including
self-identifying atheists, agnostics and those who say their religion is
“nothing in particular”) will drop to 13% of the world’s population in 2050,
down from 16% in 2010. These are both significantly lower than the peak in the
1970s under communism when nearly one-in-five people were religiously
unaffiliated
Given that so many people are attached to a faith, to violate the
free practice of religion runs the risk of alienating the mass of humanity,
something that certainly would not be ideal for morale and socio-economic
progress. Indeed, forcing the 16 percent of people with no specific religious
attachment to have a religion would likewise be alienating. Religious freedom
ensures that people, regardless of their belief or non-belief, are accorded
equal rights and equal opportunity to have a voice in society.
Second, religious freedom reduces
corruption, one of the key ingredients of sustainable economic
development. For instance, research finds that laws and practices burdening
religion are related to higher levels of corruption. This is borne out by
simple comparison between the Pew Research Center’s 2011 Government
Restrictions on Religion Index with the 2011 Corruption Perceptions Index.
Eight of the ten most corrupt countries have high or very high governmental
restrictions on religious liberty. Religious freedom also implies that business
people can draw on religious values and moral teachings in their businesses.
The attempt to force businesses to act as secular, neutral, value-free
organizations may be one contributing factor to the corruption, greed and short-sighted
decisions that lead to the global economic collapse of 2008 that still affects
many people and nations today. Allowing religion to inform business ethnics
certainly is an underused activity implied by religious freedom.
For a series
of data charts and analysis on the contribution to religious freedom to
lowering corruption, see the Weekly Number.
Third, research clearly demonstrates that religious freedom engenders peace by reducing religion-related
violence and conflict. Conversely, when religious freedom is not respected and
protected, the result is often violence and conflicts that disrupt normal
economic activities. Religious hostilities and restrictions create climates that
can drive away local and foreign investment, undermine sustainable development,
and disrupt huge sectors of economies. Such has occurred in the ongoing cycle
of religious regulations and hostilities in Egypt, which has adversely impacted
the tourism industry. More generally, religious freedom is a key ingredient to
peace and stability, which is particularly important for business because,
where stability exists, there is more opportunity to invest and conduct normal
and predictable business operations, especially in emerging and new markets.
This is the topic of the 2011 Cambridge University Press book, The Price of Freedom Denied.
Fourth, religious freedom encourages
broader freedoms that contribute to positive socio-economic
development. Economist and Nobel laureate Amartya Sen, for instance,
argues that societal development requires the removal of sources of
“unfreedom.” And restrictions on religious freedom are certainly a source of un
freedom. Removing impediments to religious freedom facilitates freedom of other
kinds. And research finds empirical evidence or this relationship. Religious
freedom is highly correlated with the presence of other freedoms and a variety
of positive social and economic outcomes ranging from better health care to
higher incomes for women. While correlations are not causation, the
correlations suggest that a more robust future research agenda should focus on
better understanding these connections because it appears the freedoms rise or
fall together.
Fifth, religious freedom develops the
economy. When religious groups operate in a free and
competitive environment, religion can play a measurable role in the human and
social development of countries. For instance, sociologist Robert Woodberry finds that the
presence of proselytizing Protestant faiths, i.e., faiths competing for
adherents, was associated with economic development throughout the world in the
previous century. Even before that, Alexis de Tocqueville recognized that such
Protestant associations in the early U.S. of these sorts established
seminaries, constructed inns, created churches, disseminated books, and founded
hospitals, prisons and schools. And these contributions are not just a legacy
from the past. Katherine Marshall, former director of the
Development Dialogue on Values and Ethics at the World Bank and former director
in the World Bank’s Africa and East Asia regions, also recognizes that faith
communities not only provide education and health services but they also provide
social safety nets for orphans, disabled people and people who fall behind.
Sixth, religious freedom overcomes
over-regulation that accompanies certain types of religious
restrictions that directly limit or harm economic activity. A few current examples
from the Muslim-majority countries – a set of countries with particularly high
religious restrictions – are illustrative of how the lack of religious freedom
contributes to worse economic and business outcomes. Religious restrictions
among Muslim-majority countries impacting businesses take many forms. One
direct religious restriction impacting economic freedom involves Islamic
finance. For instance, businesses involved in creating, buying or selling
Islamic financial instruments can find the situation that one Islamic law
(sharia) board deems a particular instrument acceptable while another board
does not, making the instrument’s acceptance on stock exchanges subject to
differing interpretations of sharia. Religious restrictions also include legal
barriers for certain import and export industries, such as the halal food
market and outright bans of certain blockbusters from the film industry. And,
certain government laws and restrictions on religious freedom can stoke
religion-related hostilities that disrupt markets throughout the region.
Examples range from employment discrimination against women over such things as
headscarves to the misuse of anti-blasphemy laws to attack business rivals. And
perhaps most significantly for future economic growth, research shows that the
instability associated with high and rising religious restrictions and
hostilities can influence young entrepreneurs to take their talents elsewhere.
(See Tarin & Uddin, Brookings)
And seventh, religious freedom multiplies trust. Religious freedom, when
respected within a company, can also directly benefit a company’s bottom line.
These include both lower costs and improved morale. An example of lower costs
includes less liability for litigation. For instance, the clothing retailer
Abercrombie & Fitch fought and lost a religious discrimination case in 2013
related to firing a Muslim stock girl for wearing a scarf in violation of the
company’s dress code. The case resulted not only in substantial legal costs but
also negative national publicity. Respect for reasonable accommodation of
religious freedom in the workplace can improve employee morale, increase
retention of valued employees, and help with conflict resolution. Moreover,
businesses may gain a competitive advantage by engaging stakeholder
expectations that are increasingly demanding that companies play a positive
role in addressing environmental, social and governance challenges.
As recognized
by business consulting group McKinsey & Company, the ethical stakeholder
has clearly emerged and is on the rise. Important business stakeholders include
business partners, investors and consumers, and a growing segment of ethically
sensitive customers tend to prefer companies that are responsive to human
rights. Indeed, consumer and government preferences given to
human-rights-sensitive companies may give a company an advantage in competitive
markets and enable it to charge premium prices and land choice contracts. And
recognizing this human rights impact on branding, companies such as Gap have
assumed shared responsibility for the conditions under which its goods are
manufactured.
Given that religious freedom contributes to better economic and
business outcomes – and especially sustainable development – advances in
religious freedom are in the self-interest of businesses, governments and
societies. While this observation does not suggest that religious freedom is
the sole or even main anecdote to poor economic performance, it does suggest
that religious freedom is related to economic success. Certainly, businesses
would benefit from taking religious freedom considerations into account in
their strategic planning, labor management and community interactions. For
instance, when evaluating locations for future research and development
operations, countries with good records on religious freedom may be a better
environment to find societies open to innovation and experimentation.
_________________________________________________________________________________
THE LINK BETWEEN
ECONOMIC AND RELIGIOUS FREEDOMS
Adopted by
THE LINK BETWEEN
ECONOMIC AND RELIGIOUS FREEDOMS
Freedom of belief is one
of three factors significantly associated with global economic growth, according to a recent study by
researchers at Georgetown University and Brigham Young University. The study
looked at the GDP growth of 173 countries in 2011 and controlled for two-dozen
different financial, social and regulatory influences.
While a
study such as this does not prove that religious freedom causes economic
growth, it does suggest the matter deserves more consideration.
Indeed,
as the world navigates away from years of poor economic performance, freedom of
religion or belief may be an unrecognized asset. For instance, the same study
finds a positive relationship between religious freedom and 10 of the 12
pillars of global competitiveness, as measured by the World Economic
Forum’s Global
Competitiveness Index. (See the chart, which shows innovative
strength to be more than twice as likely in countries with low religious
restrictions and hostilities.)
Research
indicates that when freedom of religion or belief is put to practice, it has
the following effects:
- Reduced corruption: Research
finds that laws and practices that exclude religion are related to higher
levels of corruption. This is borne out by a simple comparison between the
Pew Research Center’s 2012
Government Restrictions on Religion Index and the 2014 Corruption
Perceptions Index. Nine of the 10 most corrupt countries have
high or very high governmental restrictions on religious liberty. This
includes North Korea, which Pew does not have enough data to rate but
considers one of the most religiously restrictive countries. Religious
freedom allows businesspeople to draw on spiritual values and moral
teachings as they go about their work; it helps to inform
business ethics.
- More peace: When
religious freedoms are not respected, the result can be violence and
conflict. Normal economic activities become vulnerable to disruption, with
local and foreign investment driven away and sustainable development
undermined. One need only look at Egypt, where religious regulations and
hostilities have adversely
affected the tourism industry. More generally, tolerance
is a key ingredient in peace and stability, which is particularly
important for business because, where stability exists, there is more
opportunity to invest and conduct normal and predictable business
operations, especially in new and emerging markets. This is the topic of
the 2011 Cambridge University Press book The Price
of Freedom Denied and a 2014 study by the Institute
for Economics and Peace.
- Less harmful regulation: Some
religious restrictions can directly affect economic activity, creating
legal barriers for import and export industries, such as the halal food
market. Proscriptive laws can also stoke region-wide religious
hostilities, again disrupting markets. Examples range from discrimination
against women in the workplace (over such things as headscarves) to the
use of anti-blasphemy laws to attack business rivals, such as recently
happened in the media industry.
- Reduced liabilities: Stocks
of Abercrombie
& Fitch dropped when news broke that the clothing
retailer had allegedly refused to hire a Muslim woman wearing a headscarf,
potentially a violation of American equal opportunity employment laws. By
avoiding religious discrimination in the workplace, businesses can avoid
such liabilities.
- More diversity and growth: Freedom of
religion can contribute to a rich pluralism that is itself associated with
economic growth. For instance, the world’s 12 most religiously diverse
countries each outpaced the world’s economic growth between 2008 and
2012, according
to recent research. Indeed, the active participation of
religious minorities in society often boosts economic innovation, as
the history of
the Industrial Revolution has shown. In China, during the
Cultural Revolution of the 1960s and 70s, religion was outlawed and many
people were persecuted for their beliefs. While it is true that China
continues to regulate religion more strictly than other countries, current
conditions are far freer. This relative opening-up of society has resulted
in the spread of religion, such that China is now home to the world’s
second-largest religious population after India, according to the latest
demographic estimates. A new study
in the China Economic Review finds a link between
Christianity, adhered to by some 5% of China’s population, and the
nation’s economic growth. Furthermore, a study led
in part by Professor Ram Cnaan, of the University of Pennsylvania, finds
that a wide diversity of religious congregations in a city contributes
many millions of dollars to the economy through direct spending and
activities ranging from educational and health services to a network of
relationships that helps provide jobs and a safety net for those facing
hard times.
Arguably,
ensuring freedom for religious groups in China and elsewhere is a way to
stimulate and sustain growth in the decades ahead. It’s something every country
can benefit from.
Author:
Brian J Grim is the president of Religious Freedom & Business
Foundation and a member of the World Economic Forum’s
Global Agenda Council on the Role of Faith.
Adopted by
Adopted by
Albogasto C. Mgata
albogasto.mgata@gmail.com
+255759012022
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