Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD).
The article notes that ABS figures show that the NFP sector contributed 4.1 per cent to Australia’s total gross domestic product in 2006/07. During that year, NFPs received income of$76.6 billion and held $138 billion worth of assets. They also employed 889,900 people and used over 4.6 million volunteers. The article goes on to say:
The not-for-profit (NFP) sector would benefit from having
a Federal Government minister, as well as a peak industry
association, overseeing its interests.
a Federal Government minister, as well as a peak industry
association, overseeing its interests.
These were the views of senior executives from a diverse group
of NFP organisations who attended a recent forum in Sydney
to review their common issues. The aim was to create “a single
voice” when responding to the draft report expected to be
released in early October by the Productivity Commission (PC)
on its inquiry into the contribution of the NFP sector.
New figures released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS)
last week show that the NFP sector contributed almost $50
billion to the Australian economy in 2006/07. Yet, according to
Paul Gallimore MAICD, a director of CTC Consulting Group, this
sector remains fragmented and thinks of itself in silos.
“At present, there is no Federal government minister to oversee
the sector. It is monitored by an Upper House member, Ursula
Stephens,” says Gallimore, whose company convened the forum.
“We are not saying that there has to be an exclusive government
minister portfolio for the sector. It could be one among other
roles, but if you want change, you need someone to listen to you.
“The minister would also need access to sufficient, detailed
and quality data to make decisions and progress the sector. The
forum agreed that there was a need to set up a working party
to review how data is collected and how the process can be
improved. Ultimately, this would require an industry authority or
peak association to do the job.”
Forum attendee Richard Jones, general manager of the
Westpac Rescue Helicopter Service, says: “Given the size and
contribution of the NFP sector, I believe that with more current
data and someone to oversee it, we could get better results for
the communities we all serve. There also needs to be some
rationalisation in the sector and having someone overseeing it, or
who we could talk to directly, could assist in that process.”
Rob Oerlemans, executive officer of Lions Australia, says while
his organisation will make a direct submission to the PC, he
attended the forum because he was interested in working with
other NFPs to get a greater recognition of volunteering and the
contribution of volunteering around the country.
The ABS released its 2006/07 Australian National Accounts:
Non-Profit Institutions Satellite Account on Friday, but Gallimore
says these figures are released on an ad-hoc basis and there is no
government commitment yet to continue compiling them.
