The Dutch spent relatively less money on charities in 2022 than in 2020. This was revealed in the “Giving in the Holland” survey conducted by the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam every two years.

Two years ago, 5.3 billion euros were transferred to charitable organizations. This represents 0.62% of GDP. In Corona year 2020, this was still 5.6 billion, or 0.7 percent of GDP.

Companies in particular spent less money on charities. In 2022, the business community accounted for €1.8 billion in total donations. In 2020, this number was still 2.2 billion. According to University of Virginia philanthropy professor Renee Beckers, it’s anyone’s guess why companies give less. “We think 2022 has been a difficult year for many companies experiencing a lot of financial uncertainty,” he says. Radio NOS 1 News.

The percentage of GDP that the Dutch spend on charities has been declining for years. According to Beckers, the peak was in 2003. “Then it was 1.1 per cent of GDP. The amount was the same then as it is now, but because the economy was smaller, it was a larger portion.”

One explanation, says Beckers, is the secularization of the Netherlands. “Church people donate more to charities, and as fewer people actively practice church, the amount given decreases.”

It also seems that charities don’t always know how to find people. “A quarter of the Dutch population is made up of Dutch people of non-Dutch origin.” According to Beckers, donations have been left for this group. “You can see there’s a huge desire to donate, so this group doesn’t know how to reach out to charities.”

According to researchers, the profit lies mainly in legacies. “Now is the time for charities to focus on legacy. The most generous generation, the ones before World War II, are dying out.”

In 2022, people left €400 million to charities at death, compared to half that amount twenty years ago.