Seventy percent of the population of sub-Saharan Africa exists on less than $2 a day and is unable to pay for medications at a price point that would reimburse pharmaceutical companies for their research investment in medications to treat AIDS,

tuberculosis, and malaria. How does this relate to the demands of corporate social responsibility?

Pharmaceutical companies are businesses facing ethical dilemmas in this situation. The question is: What is their exact moral and ethical obligation with regard to the AIDS pandemic in sub-Saharan Africa that kills over 2 million people a year? Tuberculosis kills approximately 550,000 a year, and at least 1 million people die from malaria each year, mostly children. It is a challenge for modern business leaders to balance their need to respond to investors and produce a profit with their desire to alleviate human suffering. Students do not need to remember exact statistics; however, an understanding of the scope of the problem and the sense of the moral and ethical challenges can be stated in reply to the question.