Quality of CSR activity remains 'relatively low'

"Ensuring the quality of their products, paying taxes in accordance with the law, and being environmentally responsible were the focus of our attention," said Zhong Hongwu, the director at the center, explaining the rankings.

Zhong said the center now hopes the release of the report will prompt more companies into improving their management internally, and advance their marketing and branding externally, in accordance with recognized CSR principles.

The report also included figures revealed the amount of money that leading Chinese companies contributed to public welfare undertakings in 2013.

Private-sector enterprises each contributed 79.21 million yuan ($12.67 million) on average, the highest of all kinds of companies. State-owned enterprises donated 66.5 million yuan, and foreign companies each put in 27.97 million yuan.

Individually, China National Petroleum Corp donated 850.89 million yuan to philanthropic projects, and was ranked top. Dalian Wanda Group Corp Ltd and China Minsheng Bank Corp, were ranked second and third with donations of 438 million yuan and 323 million yuan respectively.

The report praised private enterprises, particularly, for making what it called significant advances in generating economic value through their philanthropic activities, but the quality of those activities did tend to vary across different provinces.

Many well-regarded Chinese companies were praised by the report for fulfilling their social responsibilities, not only with contributions to social public welfare but for CSR-related activities that also help drive their long-term growth.

Wei Yaodong, secretary-general of the charity foundation at China Resources (Holdings) Co Ltd, said the company started its philanthropic program in 2008 to help impoverished residents in rural areas build schools and other infrastructure.

"We take the living conditions of farmers as one of our main priorities, and when we build anything we always try to protect the local environment and maintain the original ecology," Wei said.