Government Seeks Public Views on Planned National Lottery Bill 2023

The Kenyan Government seeks to collect views from members of the public through the new National Lottery Bill 2023.

It calls for the establishment of a National Lottery Board (NLB) to oversee and run the country’s lottery ecosystem.

By doing so, NLB will establish the National Lottery Fund (NLF) to sensibly distribute the proceeds, find an operator to oversee the national lottery and operate and manage the national lottery.

“The main purpose of a national lottery is to support good causes and improve the quality of life of citizens through identified good causes, through the proceeds of ticket sales and taxation of winnings the government generates revenue to support various public initiatives or programs and to promote responsible gaming,” the Bill stated.

After South Africa and Nigeria, Kenya is said to have the third-largest gambling market in Africa with an estimated market size of Sh200 billion.

However, between 2020 and 2025, the East African market is anticipated to develop at a compound annual growth rate of 7.5 percent, in part because of the rising acceptance of online and mobile gambling.

The national lottery’s revenue proposals include 50% in prizes and tax on prizes, 38% going to the lottery fund, and 10% going to operator profit, tax, retailers, marketing, and operational costs.

One percent more will be allocated to the National Gambling Regulatory Authority, while the National Lottery Board and NLF operations will each receive 0.5 percent.

The Betting Control and License Board will become the Gambling Regulatory Authority under the proposed law.
Existing gambling licenses, however, will be valid for the duration of the licensing period despite being issued under the abolished statute.

“Children, director, agent or employee of an operator, a member of the national lottery board, a person who prints national lottery tickets are prohibited from participating, giving a chance to adults who proves to be above age to take part, participants of the national lottery shall be required to register themselves initially once the platforms that shall be provided by the operator” the Bill added.

“We seek to establish a national lottery run and operated by the government to ensure a healthy gambling environment in the country” said the Taskforce Vice Chairperson Gideon Thuranira.

Globally, national lotteries have been established in South Africa, Ghana, Nigeria, India, Singapore, Finland, and the United Kingdom.

To gather the public’s opinions on the creation of a national lottery, the taskforce plans to travel to each of the nation’s 47 counties.