News & Insights

The $25.8 billion sector hiding in plain sight

New Zealand’s for-purpose ecosystem employs one in 13 workers and contributes as much to GDP as financial and insurance services.

New Zealand’s for-purpose sector contributes an estimated $25.8 billion to the economy when volunteer labour is included - on par with financial and insurance services and ahead of agriculture, forestry and fishing.

JBWere New Zealand’s The Economic Value of the Sector: Measuring Aotearoa New Zealand’s for-purpose ecosystem, authored by Professor Frank Scrimgeour at the University of Waikato with contributions by Dr Wiliam McInerney, Researcher, JBWere Philanthropic Services, provides the first comprehensive estimate since Stats NZ’s 2018 Non-Profit Institutions Satellite Account.

The report estimates that the sector directly contributes $19.1 billion to GDP, equivalent to 4.2% of GDP. When the value of volunteer labour is included, its contribution rises to $25.8 billion, or equivalent to 5.7% of GDP. 

Nearly 120,000 organisations generate $40.5 billion in annual revenue and support around 231,000 paid workers and 930,000 volunteers.

The findings challenge the idea that the sector should be understood only through need and funding. It is also a significant employer and contributor to the national economy.

Professor Scrimgeour says conventional economic measures provide an important but incomplete picture.“GDP shows the sector’s scale, but not all the social, cultural and environmental value created in communities. New Zealand needs a clearer account of both.”

The research identifies three layers of value: measured economic activity; partly measured contributions, including volunteer labour; and community value such as trust, belonging, environmental care and resilience.

Fewer formal volunteers carrying a similar workload

Despite sector growth, formal volunteer numbers have fallen around 24% since 2013, while total volunteer hours have remained broadly steady. Around 930,000 volunteers contribute 165 million hours annually - the equivalent of about 79,000 full-time workers.

“The sector’s financial scale is growing while its foundations become more vulnerable. Stable hours carried by fewer volunteers raise questions about sustainability, particularly for smaller community organisations.”

McInerney says more consistent measurement would support better decisions. “Seeing the sector too narrowly means missing the economic, social, cultural and environmental outcomes it produces.

“This research gives leaders, funders and policymakers a stronger evidence base. The sector is too large and important to remain only partially measured.”

JBWere is pleased to partner with the University of Waikato to deliver this research and we encourage broad sharing of the report.

When citing: JBWere & University of Waikato. (2026). The Economic Value of the Sector: Measuring Aotearoa New Zealand’s for-purpose ecosystem. Auckland: JBWere.

Any use, quotation, reproduction, or adaptation of material contained in this report should acknowledge Professor Frank Scrimgeour, JBWere and the University of Waikato. Contact Philanthropic.Services@jbwere.co.nz for further information about how to appropriately cite this research.

Click here to access the Full Report, the Executive Report and the Annex: Methodology

If you would like to explore the findings for your particular context, contact a JBWere Adviser or our Philanthropic Services at Philanthropic.Services@jbwere.co.nz.