Australian Capital Territory – Third sector

The organizations of the third sector are called NGO’s (Non Government Organizations): is a service based non-profit organisation whose members are persons not employed by a government often engaged in humanitarian and development work. There are approximately 3000 NGO’s in the ACT.

The most important categories of organisations are community and welfare service, health, religious, education, environment and animal welfare, sporting and recreation, arts and cultural. And the main areas of focus are health, social services/welfare, education, arts and culture.

The third sector plays an important role in ACT, providing opportunities for participation and social inclusion. Members of the community are often actively involved in NGOs, either as volunteers, paid employees, donors, or as members. The majority of giving came from volunteer contributions, donations and pro bono work. Contributions from individuals can account for up to 90% of annual donations. Furthermore, the health and community services sector makes up approximately 8.7 per cent of the workforce.