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In a significant move to sanitize the lotto industry and eradicate illegal lotto operations across the country, the Board of the National Lottery Authority (NLA) has granted licenses to 15 Private Lotto Operators (PLOs).
The license granting was formally concluded with all legal documentation at a ceremony held at the NLA Headquarters in Accra on Friday, August 30, 2024.
These private lotto operators included Alhapa Lotto Limited, Obiri Asare and Sons Company Limited, Zacdow Company Limited, Glovita Lottery Company Limited, and Makafui Mogyi Company Limited.
Others include Accurate Giant Company Limited, From Home Company Limited, Miwor Kakra Yɛbedi Nti Company Limited, Super Rand Ventures, and the Best Chance Lottery Company.
The rest are SB Business Ventures, Vision 2000 Lotto Limited, Diblo Lotto, Rand Lotteries Company Limited, and Luma Technologies and Trading Company Limited.
The Rand Lotteries Company Limited and Alhapa Lotto Limited were to operate a license for 10 years each because they are currently operating the Point of Sale Terminal (POST) the digital space.
Meanwhile, the 13 others who still operate their games manually on paper were granted a two-year license each subject to renewal, propelling them to also move into the digitalized space.
The Ghana Lotto Operators Association (GLOA) is the mother association of these private lotto operators licensed today with their contracts taking effect in January 2024.
The significant development comes on the back of the NLA’s decision to temporarily halt the clampdown on these Private Lotto Operators over alleged illegal operations.
This was after the NLA had a fruitful meeting between its Board and the Ghana Lotto Operators Association (GLOA) representatives on August 14, 2024.
However, the GLOA argued that its members were operating within the confines of the law but after weeks of a back and forth between the parties, a consensus was agreed.
At a ceremony on Friday, August 30, 2024, the NLA Board, its management, representatives of GLOA, and PLOs legally signed all documents to formally give these operators the green light to operate within the authority’s framework.
Board Chairman of the NLA, Gary Nimako Marfo indicated the move was necessary to give the PLOs a roadmap of compliance to ensure that all unlicensed operators in the country are regulated.
He emphasised and noted that the licenses grants these PLOs to comply with the licensing regime under the National Lotto Act 2006, (Act 722) Lottery Regulations 2008, (L.I. 1948), and the Veterans Administration Ghana (VAG) 2012, (Act 844).
“It is an affirmation that you have been given licenses to operate as lotto marketing companies in the country,” he said with a hand of applause from the licensed operators.
He underscores being proud of achieving such a momentous feat in the history of the lotto industry because the process leading to this significant milestone was a peculiar task.
He explained that the NLA Board under his able leadership sought a positive impact in the best interest of all operators and the country at large in terms of revenue generation.
“Let me emphasize that I was not sent here by President Akufo-Addo to come and collapse anybody’s company, that is not why I am here. I am here to make sure that your businesses flourish so that whatever you must pay to the government, government too can get its fair share of the revenue.
So I think that where we now with the issuance of these licenses to your companies, you can go home and do your businesses in peace while whatever is due government, the government too can get it,” he said.
Gary Nimako further charged the licensed operators to “ensure that people who engaged in illegal operations are also brought to a halt fault with. I will urge you to make sure that power is fully exercised to its full extent because you cannot pay monies to NLA or government by extension and someone is not paying and you are looking unconcern.”
According to him, the era of illegal operations within the lotto industry in Ghana has today been brought to a close and believes it shall be so forever.
He, however, served notice that only the aforementioned licensed operators together with some eight already licensed are the companies authorized to operate in the country henceforth and warned that unauthorized operators do the opposite at their own risk if caught.
The legal practitioner used the occasion and thanked all stakeholders most especially the Committee of the Licensing Legal and Compliance whose hard work ensured the execution of what he described as a “good job and an endurance task.”
He also announced that the initial 40% commissioning percentage of wins has now been reduced to 25%, a decision he said, involved all stakeholders including these licensed POLs.
On behalf of the Private Lotto Operators (PLOs), who doubles as Acting Chairman of the Ghana Lotto Operators Association (GLOA), Noah Afonope expressed their gratitude to the NLA for such a significant feat.
“I think that it has been a rough journey but at this point now I can say thank you very much to the Board and we can continue with our work,” he added.
