By Urshita Grover

Statistics Canada conducted the Canadian Survey on Business Conditions from January 2^nd to February 5^th, 2024 to collect information on emerging business issues. This survey edition focused on business expectations and conditions across Canada, and incorporated a dedicated section for non-profit organizations (“NPOs”) to address data gaps and provide better insights into the non-profit sector. On April 29, 2024, Statistics Canada published the key findings on NPOs in an infographic, summarized below.

In 2023, over 90% of NPOs had a board of directors, with less than half of the board members being women (47.3%). Other representation included members of racialized groups (9.8%), persons with disabilities (2.9%), First Nations, Métis, or Inuit (2.6%), and non-binary persons (0.8%). More than 75% of NPOs had senior managers, with women making up over half of these positions (56.3%)​.

The survey also made a distinction between two categories in relation to NPOs: (i) the groups targeted by the programs and activities of NPOs versus (ii) the type of NPOs/programs and activities that were provided.

In the first category, NPOs sought to meet the needs of and provide programs and activities for a wide range of diverse groups, with 42.1% of them primarily serving the general public, while others focused on children or youth (14.2%), religious or spiritual groups (9.1%), seniors (5.1%)​, and people in particular occupations or union members (4.7%).

Regarding the second category, the largest proportion of NPOs focused on sports and recreation (33.3%) in 2023, followed by religious organizations (19.8%), grant-making and fundraising (8.8%), and social services (8.5%). The lowest number of organizations was in health (1.0%) and environment-focused activities (0.4%)​.

Finally, nearly half of NPOs (46.1%) reported an increase in demand for their services in 2023, yet only about a quarter (24.3%) reported an increase in their capacity to meet this demand. This gap was more pronounced in larger NPOs, and those focused on social services and in health organizations​.

​Read the May 2024 Charity & NFP Law Update