Social & Public Sectors

The public sector is the part of the economy composed of both public services and public enterprises. Public services include public goods and governmental services such as the military, police, infrastructure (public roads, bridges, tunnels, water supply, sewers, electrical grids, telecommunications, etc.), public transit, public education, along with health care and those working for the government itself, such as elected officials. The public sector might provide services that a non-payer cannot be excluded from (such as street lighting), services which benefit all of society rather than just the individual who uses the service. Public enterprises, or state-owned enterprises, are self-financing commercial enterprises that are under ownership which provide various private goods and services for sale and usually operate on a commercial basis.

The voluntary sector or community sector is the duty of social activity undertaken by organizations that are nonprofit organizations and non-governmental. This sector is also called the third sector, in contrast to the sector and the private sector. Civic sector or social sectors are other terms for the sector, emphasizing its relationship to civil society. Given the diversity of organizations that comprise the sector, Peter Frumkin prefers “non-profit and voluntary sector”.