Towards a Strong Gaming Industry

Adolphus Ekpe, DG National Lottery Regulatory Commission; Yahaya Maikori, President Nigeria Gaming Association and Mr. Lanre Gbajabiamila, CEO Lagos state Lottery Board at the just concluded World Regulatory Briefing Africa held at Four Points by Sheraton.

 President of the Nigerian Gaming Association, Mr. Yahaya Maikori has opined that the perception that regulatory framework in the Nigerian lottery and gaming environment is weak or non-existent is
subjective.


Maikori made the observation at the World Regulatory Briefing (WRB) in Lagos. He warned that there was no perfect framework anywhere in the world, adding that the sufficiency of the framework of any jurisdiction can only be judged by its policy direction.

According toMaikori, there is no policy consideration in Nigeria. The gaming industry is simply perceived as source of revenue. He said,

“Our legal framework is a work-in progress. Technology has outpaced regulation and regulators are only trying to play catch-up. But regardless of the perception our framework has so far been able to sustain the aspirations of genuine operators.”

The Lagos meeting was the first of its kind in
Africa for the WRB, a platform created to track legislative developments in emerging markets and to plug operators into the market opportunities.

However, it was the second gaming event in Nigeria within one year.