Heineken in Africa

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Heineken in Africa

A Multinational Unleashed

Olivier van Beemen

A Hurst Publication

Highly readable account by an investigative journalist
Includes case studies of how a major multi-national operates in the developing world
A hard look at how Heineken crushed indigenous competition and collaborates with dictators, authoritarian governments and a convicted war criminal

Heineken in Africa

A Multinational Unleashed

Olivier van Beemen

A Hurst Publication

Description

For Heineken, "rising Africa" is already a reality: the profits it extracts there are almost 50 per cent above the global average, and beer costs more in some African countries than it does in Europe. Heineken claims its presence boosts economic development on the continent. But is this true?

Investigative journalist Olivier van Beemen has spent years seeking the answer, and his conclusion is damning: Heineken has hardly benefited Africa at all. On the contrary, there are some shocking skeletons in its African closet: tax avoidance, sexual abuse, links to genocide and other human rights violations, high-level corruption, crushing competition from indigenous brewers, and collaboration with dictators and pitiless anti-government rebels.

Heineken in Africa caused a political and media furor on publication in The Netherlands, and was debated in their Parliament. It is an unmissable exposé of the havoc wreaked by a global giant seeking profit in the developing world.

Heineken in Africa

A Multinational Unleashed

Olivier van Beemen

A Hurst Publication

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements
Foreword: It Will Happen Here
1. Ethiopia
2. History
3. Nigeria
4. Sales and Marketing
5. Sierra Leone
6. Impact
7. South Africa
8. Corporate Responsibility
9. Burundi
10. Working for Heineken
11. Congo
12. Conflict Zones
13. Rwanda
14. And What about Heineken?
15. Mozambique
Postscript
Epilogue: The Boss and the Promotion Girl
Notes
Bibliography
Index

Heineken in Africa

A Multinational Unleashed

Olivier van Beemen

A Hurst Publication

Author Information

Olivier van Beemen is a Dutch investigative journalist specializing in Africa. This is his first book.

Heineken in Africa

A Multinational Unleashed

Olivier van Beemen

A Hurst Publication

Reviews and Awards

" [This] critical account of the brewer goes to the heart of doing business in challenging markets . . . [a] provocative book."--The Financial Times

"The unauthorized story of a beer giant's African saga. . . Van Beemen precisely and rigorously ticks off Heineken's excesses and tribulations in Africa. . . For a long time Heineken's management refused to meet the journalist, before changing their minds and giving him interviews almost two years after the book first appeared, which offer a valuable counterpoint and make this remarkable survey all the more balanced."--Le Monde

"A complex tale of a company operating in a country defined by perpetual conflict and warlordism . . . this book it is an important window into how careless corporate behavior can impede Africa's development."--African Business

"Disturbing . . . revelatory . . . shocking."--The Budapest Times

"van Beemen, the author of this well-researched and provocative book, has uncovered an astounding counter-story to the corporate spin . . . an almost perfect case study of what can go wrong when globalisation is unleashed in markets with huge financial potential but without the regulatory frameworks present in more stable parts of the world."--Prospect

"One of the most readable, nuanced and critical accounts of 'multinationals doing business in Africa'. . .Van Beemen uses his unagitated and meticulously researched style to the fullest advantage . . . an excellent book."--Aidnography Blog

"A brilliant and exhaustive investigation into a corporate giant's claims of its positive actions on that continent."--Counterfire