Lagos State and stakeholders in the gaming industry have called for stronger player-protection measures across Africa to curb underage gambling, addiction and other gambling-related harms.

They made the call at a media briefing to unveil the inaugural Africa Safer Gambling Week (September 7-11), aimed at promoting responsible gambling and encouraging safer participation across the continent.

Chief Executive Officer of the Lagos State Lotteries and Gaming Authority (LSLGA), Bashir Are, said the initiative was driven by the need to protect consumers and strengthen responsible gaming practices across different jurisdictions.

He said the state had intensified enforcement against underage gambling, with enforcement teams deployed across three districts in Lagos.

“My entire enforcement team is on the streets all over Lagos. We are divided into three districts, especially to make sure that underage people are not permitted to gamble or to do otherwise,” he said.

Operators are, therefore, warned that those who allow underage persons to gamble would face severe sanctions.

He added that regulators, operators, industry associations, technology providers and other stakeholders across Africa had come together to promote safer gaming, noting that the initiative would involve activities across the continent, including engagements with tertiary institutions to educate young people on responsible gambling and addiction.

According to him, stakeholders from countries, including Cuba, Malawi, Kenya and Tanzania, are participating in the initiative as part of efforts to strengthen cooperation among regulators and industry players.

Are said the campaign would also extend to public transportation in Lagos, including trains and Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) buses, to broaden public awareness of responsible gaming.

Meanwhile, a board member representing Africa Gaming Alliance (AGA) and Head of Responsible Gaming at BetPawa, Olabimpe Akingba, said many responsible gaming tools were already available, but customers were often unaware of them or did not know how to use them.

Akingba said the challenge informed the Africa Safer Gambling Week, led by the AGA, to coordinate awareness campaigns across jurisdictions.

She said the initiative would promote responsible gambling and remind players that gambling is an entertainment and not a source of income or overnight wealth.

Chief Executive Officer, Safe Gaming Technologies, operator of SafePlay, Kayode Lawal, disclosed that his company introduced a self-exclusion platform that allows gamblers to voluntarily bar themselves from gambling across registered operators in Lagos State.