Uganda’s Finance Minister promotes responsible gambling

Uganda's Finance Minister promotes responsible gambling
Uganda's Finance Minister promotes responsible gambling

Uganda’s Minister of Finance Henry Musasizi requested the installation of digital monitors for encouraging responsible gambling. He mentioned this plan during the presentation of the strategic plan for the years 2022/2023-2024/2025 of the National Lotteries and Gaming Regulatory Board (LGRB). It took place at the headquarters of the ministry in the capital Kampala. More precisely, it aims at the protection of the public from the negative effects of dubious betting and the compliance with lottery laws.

A study by the Economic Policy Review Commission in 2015 revealed that more than 70% of Ugandans below the age of 30 regularly use various gambling services. Musasizi thinks that without controlling or restricting gambling, such a large proportion of young people could turn into something else. Therefore, there could be control on the spread of gambling businesses everywhere.

He said, “We strive to promote responsible gambling. Because: we want to prevent people from falling into addiction. I think that the same to alcohol consumers applies. If you claim that only people beyond the age of 18 can consume alcohol, they insist that people who aren’t yet 25 should also be barred from gambling.”

Ugandan gambling companies generated the bulk of 110 billion Ush

Furthermore, Musasizi said that after the installation of the digital monitors, the execution will follow. Thus, people under the age of 25 won’t be allowed to place bets. Additionally, there will then be prosecution of bookmakers who don’t comply with the regulations.

Also, he explained that the digital monitors will play a central role in simplifying the revenue collection and alerting the regulators. Thus, they will act in case of problems. Musasizi reported that in 2021, gambling companies contributed most of the revenue, amounting to 110 billion Ush. Therefore, he added that he regrets the introduction of drastic measures against them.

Alice Kopp

By Alice Kopp

Alice is half Austrian and half Italian. That's why she experienced the 1990 World Cup in Italy at first hand. And that awakened her enthusiasm for football. Since she has loved writing since childhood, Alice began to study journalism while still at school. It was very convenient for her that her class took part in a project of a German daily newspaper. She was also allowed to write for the children's pages of an Austrian daily newspaper and to get a taste of the sports department of the same medium. This is how she received her first press accreditations, which was of course anything but a matter of course for the then 18-year-old. Although she was partly advised against it, Alice decided to study journalism and communication sciences. After a few years, she decided to use the exams she had taken as an elective. Nevertheless, she applies the knowledge she has acquired in her further professional life. The same applies to her language skills. In addition to her mother tongues German and Italian, Alice is also proficient in English and Spanish. She also understands French and can use this language in research. During her studies, Alice was involved in an Austrian football club. At the same time, she wrote for a total of three Austrian portals and worked as an Austria correspondent for an Italian-language online medium. This collaboration started during Giovanni Trapattoni's era at Red Bull Salzburg and continued during EURO 2008. This gave her the opportunity to interact with Trapattoni as well as with Italian journalists. From the following year, Alice initially worked with a Swiss portal before discovering sports betting content for herself. On the one hand, this kept her in sports journalism, and on the other, it broadened her horizons. And that both in the context of the sports betting industry and with other sports as well as countries. In the field of sports journalism, she focused in particular on football from around the world, volleyball and beach volleyball. In addition, she naturally wrote several guides, bookmaker profiles, bonus articles and other content for betting enthusiasts. She did this for the same company for about ten years, writing articles in German and Italian. She also built the Italian-language website together with the managing director. Meanwhile, Alice started working with another Austrian football club. Furthermore, she joined the Association Internationale de la Presse Sportive (AIPS) in 2016. This gives her the opportunity to watch teams and athletes on the ground relatively often. Not only sports betting, but also radio In January 2019, the next step in her professional development followed. For: she started creating premium content on the topic of sports betting. In the process, she finally put out feelers to almost all countries and all continents. And this was not least due to the fact that both German and English-speaking users subscribed to her content. Nevertheless, Alice continued to use her knowledge of Italian, among other things. On the one hand, because she regularly exchanges ideas with Italian colleagues, and on the other, because she works with a web radio station. The Corona crisis had a strong impact on the sports world and on interest in sports betting, primarily in the early days. Therefore, a fresh start was necessary and, on balance, Alice found the fields of activity that suited her best. She also writes articles for an agency on almost all disciplines as well as on eSports and content for a German online medium. Alice is half Austrian and half Italian. That's why she experienced the 1990 World Cup in Italy at first hand. And that awakened her enthusiasm for football.