Number of NPOs in Japan Rockets Past 20,000

The number of registered non-profit organizations (NPOs) in Japan exceeded 20,000 for the first time in January 2005, according to monthly statistics released by the Cabinet Office on February 15, 2005.

NPOs acquire legal status through the certification of either prefectural governor or prime minister. Since the entry into force of the Law to Promote Specified Nonprofit Activities on December 1, 1998, the number of NPOs certified under the law has been steadily increasing, topping 1,000 in November 1999, 5,000 in October 2001, and 10,000 in February 2003. Many of them are active in the fields of social welfare or the environment.

The number has been growing by 300 to 600 per month since January 2005, and thus is expected to keep increasing by 5,000 per year. The latest statistics as well as the past trends of the incorporated NPOs are available on the website of the Cabinet Office (in Japanese).



Posted: 2005/08/08 08:37:09 PM
Japanese version