24
Between 1999 - 2004 the voluntary Commitment in Germany increased considerably:
According to the 2nd survey on voluntary commitment by order of the German Gov-
ernment68 there has been an increase of voluntary commitment of persons from the age
of 14 in 2004 to 36% of the population (23,4 million). This was an increase by 2 % in
comparison to 1999. The potential for voluntary commitment also rose during this pe-
riod: In 1999 26 % of the population were ready for a voluntary commitment, in 2004
32 %.69
There were other remarkable results:70
• Young people are highly committed (36 %), their potential is even higher (43 %).
• The increase of commitment from 1999 to 2004 was above average in cases of
persons over 46 years of age, unemployed, retired people and East Germans.
• The sectors are very diverse: sports and movement (11 %), school and kindergar-
ten (7 %), church and religion (6%), culture and music (5,5%), social activities
(5,5 %), leisure and social gathering (5%).
• There was an increase from 1999 to 2004 in cases of school and kindergarten,
work with young people and social activities.
The opening for new approaches of self-help and voluntary work and the inclusion of
persons being committed to it has become an increasingly important task for voluntary
welfare associations. Therefore they increasingly admitted initiatives and smaller or-
ganizations to their association as co-operative members. This applies in particular for
the Association of Non-affiliated Charities which is grouping independent organizations
71
active in social work :
• 1960: 723 member organizations,
• 1980: 2.858 member organizations,
• 2003: 10.000 member organisations.
Another kind of reaction by the voluntary welfare associations is the organizational
commitment in newly developing fields, e. g. the agencies of voluntary work.72 These
agencies are active in different sectors:73
68BMFSFJ 2005; see to the societal commitment, voluntary and charity work and self-help in general:
Backer/Naegele/Bispinck/Hofemann/Neubauer 2007, Bd. 2: 578-593.
69 BMFSFJ 2005:11-12.
70 BMFSFJ 2005: 14-22.
71 http://www.der-paritaetische.de/unser_spitzenverband/state: 2009, and Institut der deutschen Wirt-
schaft 2004, state: 2002), Boeβenecker 2005: 193.
72 Zimmer/Priller 1997: 264.
73 BMFSFJ 2002: 60.