By: Maame Efua Kwaduah
The National Lottery Authority (NLA) has attributed its challenges in tackling illegal lottery operations to interference from political figures.
Director General of the NLA, Sammy Awuku, has reported a significant decline in revenue from over GH₵400 million in 2017 to GH₵200 million in 2021.
Mr. Awuku revealed that there are approximately 780 illegal lottery operators in Ghana, with the World Lotto Association estimating the annual lottery market at 1.8 billion cedis.
Of this, he said around one billion cedis is controlled by illegal operators who evade taxes and remain unidentified.
He said the NLA has decided to take a firm stance against unlicensed lottery operations, emphasizing that only licensed operators will be allowed to conduct lottery activities.
The Authority is also grappling with a loss of at least one billion cedis to black market lottery operations. This is according to the Attorney General’s report discussed at the Public Accounts Committee in Parliament.
In response, Mr. Awuku stated that the NLA has intensified its efforts to enforce its authority by conducting swoops and shutting down unlicensed operators. The Board has resolved that, henceforth, no one will be allowed to run lottery without proper licensing.
“We’ve been embarking on swoops, but the Board took a firm decision last week that the NLA must now go out there to ensure that regardless of whoever you are, if you are not licensed to operate the lottery, you shouldn’t operate it,” he said.