Quango

A quango (quasi-autonomous non-governmental organization) is an organization to which a government has <a href="/facts/Devolution/SB1q2IVU">devolved</a> power, but which is still partly controlled and/or financed by government bodies. The <a href="/facts/Acronym/nlHK7aRt">acronym</a> is derived from the shortening of "quasi NGO", where NGO is the abbreviation for a <a href="/facts/Non-government_organization/qxQSsxsI">non-government organization</a>.
As its original name suggests, a quango is a hybrid form of organization, with elements of both NGOs and <a href="/facts/Public_sector/bV8gdzPu">public sector</a> bodies. Although originating in the United States, the term is frequently applied in the <a href="/facts/United_Kingdom/kuPAILt2">United Kingdom</a> and, to a lesser degree, other countries in the <a href="/facts/Anglosphere/mRuTW7Y5">core and middle Anglosphere</a>.
In the UK, the term quango covers different "arm's-length" government bodies, including "<a href="/facts/Non-departmental_public_bodies/rrrxAPVf">non-departmental public bodies</a>" (NDPBs), <a href="/facts/Non-ministerial_government_departments/xaCva90n">non-ministerial government departments</a>, and <a href="/facts/Executive_agencies/hTRRfjYN">executive agencies</a>.

Quango open-in-new

Quango