According to the New Zealand Charities Register there are 25,279 registered charities in New Zealand - that's one for every 175 New Zealanders.
Why do we have so many charities?
For the first time ever we have the ability to look closely at who these charities are and what they are doing. When the Charities Act 2005 came into force it required each registered charity to publish an annual return as well as financial statements. So today we can analyse several years' worth of data to understand this growing sector.
Although most charities are no doubt doing great work, are there some charities on the register that the public should be concerned about? There have been news stories of gangs running charities in the past, as well as multi-national businesses switching from for-profit to tax-free charitable status. Some of the charity structures are suprisingly complex. Why?
I've started this blog to dig into the rich data on the Charities Register to see what I can find out. Maybe there will be some surprises. Or maybe everything is above board.
If you have any feedback or suggestions then send them through - the more eyes watching charities in New Zealand the better.
