Almost 100,000 Non-profit Institutions in NZ

Counting Non-profit Institutions in New Zealand 2005  –  Media Release

There were 97,000 non-profit institutions operating in New Zealand in 2005, Statistics New Zealand said today. The largest number were in culture, sport and recreation (45 percent), followed by social services (12 percent) and religion (10 percent).

The majority (90 percent) of non-profit institutions did not employ paid staff. Volunteers outnumbered paid employees by approximately four to one. Non-profit institutions employed 105,340 paid employees, and enlisted the help of over 436,500 volunteers.

The greatest number of paid employees were involved in social services (30 percent), followed by education (19 percent) and culture, sport and recreation (16 percent). Health services employed the greatest number of paid staff per non-profit institution.

Non-profit institutions are defined as being organised, not set up to make a profit, not distributing profits, separate from government, self-governing and having voluntary membership. The register of non-profit organisations was collected from Statistics New Zealand's register of businesses, and other sources, including the registers of incorporated societies and charitable trusts held by the Companies Office.

The numbers released today are the first step towards a more detailed report, Non-Profit Institutions Satellite Account due out on 28 August 2007. The report will measure the contribution of non-profit institutions to the New Zealand economy and include a valuation of volunteer labour given to non-profit organisations.