Reports AFRICA - KENYA
Taking the plunge into mobile gaming
Online and mobile sports-betting has swept across Kenya and have overtaken casino gaming thanks to media advertising spend. Chinese-funded slots parlours have also flourished under a pilot programme, but their future in Kenya remains in doubt
Kenya is a founding member of the East African Community which gained independence from the UK in 1963. Kenya is the economic and transport hub of
East Africa and its GDP growth ($3,300 per capita) has averaged around five percent for the past several years. Despite this it is still among the low middle income countries hampered by corruption and reliance upon several primary goods. Unemployment stands at around 40 percent and agriculture remains the backbone with around 80 percent of the population working in this sector which contributes 25 percent to GDP. Kenya’s service sector contributes around 61
percent of GDP and is dominated by tourism. Tis sector has steadily grown since independence and by the late 1980s became the country’s principal source of foreign exchange. A large number come from Germany and the
UK and are attracted by the coastal beaches and wildlife reserves. Today it tops the foreign exchange earning sector followed by flowers, tea and coffee. Numbers however are dropping rather than
growing. Visitor figures fell by 25 percent last year for the first five months of 2015 due to terrorism in the country. Figures stood at 284,313 by May 2015 compared to 381,278 for the same five month period the year before. Back in 2012 total tourist figures were 1.6 million compared to 1.2 million in 2014. Te total contribution of travel and tourism to
GDP in Kenya was KES561.8bn (10.5 percent) in 2014 but this is expected to rise to KES964.2bn by 2025.
P52 NEWSWIRE / INTERACTIVE /
247.COM Virtually all forms of gambling in Kenya are
legal since the Betting, Lotteries and Gaming Act of 1966 was introduced. Before this the sector was handled by the police department. Tis legislation also established the Betting Control and Licensing Board (BCLB) which is responsible for the regulations and licensing and is backed by the Ministry of Interior. Te board authorises lotteries, casinos, prize competitions and sports betting. Although Kenya is predominantly a land
based market there has been a proliferation of sports betting operators plus a licensed online casino (not yet operational) and sports betting has become the boom sector. Players can now enjoy online and mobile
sports betting and most operators offer betting via shops or via the growing trend of using mobile and online platforms. Tey have overtaken the casinos due to media
advertising and their online and mobile platforms and revenues are said to be huge. Tere are big endorsement and sponsorship opportunities which the casinos cannot compete with. Meanwhile there has also been an infiltration
of slot parlours mostly owned by the Chinese and these are spread all over Kenya. Teir licences expired in July and this was a pilot programme and what happens next is unclear. Te gambling sector is backed by the
Association of Gaming Operators Kenya (AGOK) and gross revenues for the gambling and sports betting sector was said to be around KES5bn of which the casino sector is responsible for around KES2bn.
Te Betting, Lotteries and Gaming Act 2012
includes the following: l Establishment of the Betting Control and Licensing Board to issue licences and permits.
l All licences expire on June 30th. l Betting – unlicensed betting premises are
subject to fines of up to KES10,000 or imprisonment of up to one year. Anyone betting in an unlicensed betting shop are subject to KES5,000 fine and up to six months imprisonment.
l Bookmaker licences are issued for either: On- course which authorises bookmaking at any authorised race meeting; off-course licence for bookmakers at betting premises and licences for bookmakers for both on and off- course betting.
l A fee is paid in respect of each betting premises with licence.
l Totalisator licences, as with bookmaker licences are issued for on-course, off-course and for both types.
l Betting pool schemes are permitted with a licence but not applicable to more than one pool betting scheme, promoter or agent.
l Lotteries – licences permitted for lotteries for
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