Policy Priority: Data for effective decision making

Policy priority: Data is needed for effective decision making for and by our sector

A lack of economic, organizational and employment data on the nonprofit sector means that public policy, funding and organizational decision making is done without basic information.

Why it matters

Good policy is informed by strong evidence. The lack of data on the nonprofit sector collected by the federal government hinders the ability of policymakers at all levels of government to make sound policy decisions about our sector. The nonprofit sector itself also lacks comprehensive data on who we are as organizations, critical human resources data on nonprofits and charities, and essential macroeconomic sector data.

Did you know?

There is currently no publicly available list of all nonprofit organizations in Canada, and no comprehensive source of information about how many organizations there are, where they are located, who they serve, or what they do.
The sector lacks critical labour market data on both charities and nonprofits, leading to an inability to conduct labour force planning and understand basic facts related to workforce composition, skills and compensation.
Statistics Canada does not have a mandate to collect data about the nonprofit sector, unlike for many other industries of similar or smaller size.

Our ask

Recommendation 1: We recommend the federal government provide Statistics Canada with a mandate to carry out regular updates to the national survey of nonprofit organizations, to be repeated every year, and provide funding of $500,000 annually for this purpose. The survey should include grassroots (unincorporated) organizations.
Recommendation 2: We recommend the federal government provide $750,000 to establish a unit within Statistics Canada whose mandate is to collect, analyze, and share data on the nonprofit sector.
Recommendation 3: We recommend the federal government provide $2 million in 2025-26 and $1 million ongoing for creating and maintaining a Canadian Nonprofit Data Lab.

Please see the 2025 pre-budget submission of the Federal Nonprofit Data Coalition for more details.

Federal Nonprofit Data Coalition

The Federal Nonprofit Data Coalition is an advocacy group with a membership including representatives of nearly 50 nonprofits. The Coalition advances the nonprofit sector's priorities relating to data collected by the federal government. If you’re interested in learning more about the Federal Nonprofit Data Coalition or joining, please get in touch at publicpolicy@imaginecanada.ca.

Learn more

Addressing the Nonprofit Data Deficit: A 25 Year Review

DARO, 2024

What newly available data tells us about cybersecurity in Canadian nonprofits

Imagine Canada, 2024

Submission to 2025 Federal Pre-Budget Consultation