Impacts of the EU Accession on the Hungarian Nonprofit Sector

Many people think that economy is just about numbers,§mathematics, theories, etc. In order to change their§mind, these people should study the nonprofit sector.§Obviously, if we want to understand how this sector§operates, we have to study figures, but a significant§part of the areas connected to this sector cannot be§"measured" by numbers. When studying the voluntary§sector, we meet personal problems, personal needs,§different types of people from all parts of the life§with their hobbies and habits, communication at§citizen level, solidarity and, first of all, we feel§our personalresponsibility of the whole community.§This study tries to describe this multicoloured§sector in general and to compare its status before§and after Hungary's entry to the European Union. To§understand better the topic, first we have to give a§short overview of the terminology issues, the§legalforms and major functions of the nonprofit§organizations, and the changes of the EU policy§towards the third sector. In the next part of the§thesis, we will summarize the history of the§voluntary organizations, the civil expectations§towards EU membership, including two interesting§scenarios about the effects of the EU accession on§the sector. The fastest and most tangible effect of§the accession is the possibility to participate in EU§tenders; therefore, the paper will emphasize this§part of the recent developments and study it in§detail. The concluding chapter tries to discuss areas§to develop and questions waiting for response. Many people think that economy is just about numbers,§mathematics, theories, etc. In order to change their§mind, these people should study the nonprofit sector.§Obviously, if we want to understand how this sector§operates, we have to study figures, but a significant§part of the areas connected to this sector cannot be§"measured" by numbers. When studying the voluntary§sector, we meet personal problems, personal needs,§different types of people from all parts of the life§with their hobbies and habits, communication at§citizen level, solidarity and, first of all, we feel§our personalresponsibility of the whole community.§This study tries to describe this multicoloured§sector in general and to compare its status before§and after Hungary''s entry to the European Union. To§understand better the topic, first we have to give a§short overview of the terminology issues, the§legalforms and major functions of the nonprofit§organizations, and the changes of the EU policy§towards the third sector. In the next part of the§thesis, we will summarize the history of the§voluntary organizations, the civil expectations§towards EU membership, including two interesting§scenarios about the effects of the EU accession on§the sector. The fastest and most tangible effect of§the accession is the possibility to participate in EU§tenders; therefore, the paper will emphasize this§part of the recent developments and study it in§detail. The concluding chapter tries to discuss areas§to develop and questions waiting for response.