Executive Secretary of National Lottery Trust Fund (NLTF), Bello Maigari, has disclosed plans by the federal government to acquire a Central Monitoring System (CMS) for the gaming industry for maximum regulation and curbing of leakages, to achieve its target of N100 billion annual revenue from the industry.
He made this known during the presentation of sporting kits to the agency’s staff in Abuja.
According to him, “As we speak, the industry is worth almost two trillion naira. The fact that the industry has gone this far is due to the level playing ground established by the government. Lottery and gaming businesses are flourishing across the nook and crannies of this country.
“For instance, Bet9ja, a betting platform, is in the remotest part of the country. This is to tell you how wide and far lottery and gaming have grown in the country.”
Maigari decried the poor return to government coffers and said that fortunately, government had in the last few years, reawakened and was currently working to establish a CMS that will see to the streamlining of revenue that will accrue to the government.
“We are looking at the possibility of getting about N100b annually from the industry by the time the CMS is established and managed for the good of all stakeholders,” he added.
He said the sporting kits donated to the staff were to ensure that workers are physically and mentally fit, adding that it would also aid their preparation for the Federation of Public Service Games (FEPSGA) held yearly.
Recall that a research firm, Research, and Markets, had reported that there are roughly 60 million Nigerians aged between 18 and 40, involved in active betting and that despite the huge number of people engaged in betting, the Nigerian government-generated less than N1 billion from the gaming industry in 2019.
