Africa Launches First Continent-Wide Safer Gambling Week
South Africa.- 9 September 2026 | www.zonadeazar.com The African iGaming Alliance has launched the first Africa Safer Gambling Week, a continent-wide initiative aimed at strengthening player protection and promoting safer gambling practices.
The campaign brings together regulators, industry associations and other African gambling stakeholders around a shared objective: ensuring sector growth is accompanied by stronger consumer protection and public awareness.
#PlaySafeAfrica Campaign
The initiative is running under the #PlaySafeAfrica banner.
Each day will focus on a specific safer-gambling topic.
Key themes include:
- Responsible gambling.
- Personal limits.
- Prevention of underage gambling.
- Consumer protection.
- Public education and awareness.
The campaign is designed to turn these principles into coordinated activity across Africa.
Coordinated Programme
Africa Safer Gambling Week will feature joint engagement between regulators and industry participants.
Activities will include:
- Public education.
- Digital awareness campaigns.
- Regulatory engagement.
- Sharing of good practices.
- Cross-market collaboration.
The programme seeks to develop common principles while recognising the regulatory differences between individual African jurisdictions.
Annual Initiative
The African iGaming Alliance confirmed that Africa Safer Gambling Week will become an annual event.
The inaugural edition therefore serves as the starting point for a recurring continent-wide player-protection agenda.
Its annual format is intended to keep safer gambling at the forefront of discussions as Africa’s gambling industry develops.
Growth and Protection
The initiative is based on the principle that growth in gambling must be accompanied by corresponding improvements in player safeguards.
Rapid expansion of digital betting and iGaming across African markets has increased the importance of prevention, education and consumer-protection tools.
The AiA believes regulators and operators share responsibility for delivering these safeguards.
Statements
African iGaming Alliance CEO Peter Kesitilwe said player protection must grow alongside Africa’s gambling sector.
He said Africa Safer Gambling Week brings regulators and the industry together around a shared commitment to safer gambling and stronger consumer protection.
Kesitilwe also emphasised the importance of giving customers the tools and information they need to gamble responsibly.
Cross-Border Collaboration
The AiA believes cooperation between jurisdictions will become increasingly important as Africa’s industry continues to expand.
Its priorities include:
- Stronger regulatory cooperation.
- Exchange of industry experience.
- Sharing good practices.
- Joint development of player-protection policies.
- Greater coordination between regulators and operators.
The objective is to prevent individual jurisdictions from addressing shared challenges entirely in isolation.
Channelisation Towards Legal Operators
A major focus of Africa Safer Gambling Week will be the importance of channelising players towards regulated gambling products.
The AiA has warned that black-market operators frequently lack equivalent consumer safeguards.
Maintaining a strong legal channel is therefore considered an important component of effective safer-gambling policy.
Illegal Market and Consumer Protection
Player protection extends beyond obligations imposed on regulated operators.
The expansion of offshore or unauthorised platforms can undermine safeguards including:
- Age verification.
- Player limits.
- Self-exclusion.
- Advertising controls.
- Behavioural monitoring.
- Complaint mechanisms.
For the AiA, tackling the illegal market is therefore closely linked to consumer-protection policy.
From Cooperation to Action
Olabimpe Akingba, Head of Responsible Gaming at pawaTech and an AiA board member, said the initiative demonstrates the Alliance’s intention to move beyond discussions about cross-border cooperation.
She highlighted Africa Safer Gambling Week as a practical example of turning collaboration between African jurisdictions into concrete player-protection action.
Agreement with Association of Nigerian Bookmakers
Alongside the launch, the AiA announced a memorandum of understanding with the Association of Nigerian Bookmakers.
The agreement aims to strengthen cooperation in Nigeria and across the wider African market.
Areas of collaboration include:
- Safer gambling.
- Player protection.
- Taxation.
- Institutional cooperation.
Cooperation with Kenya
The Nigerian agreement is the second MoU signed by the AiA in less than three weeks.
In late August, the organisation established a cooperation framework with the Association of Gaming Operators of Kenya.
That agreement covers areas including regulation, public policy, responsible gambling, consumer protection, taxation and payments.
Industry Context
Africa is among the regions experiencing significant growth in digital betting.
Mobile access, digital payment infrastructure and strong demand for sports betting are accelerating the development of national markets.
This growth also increases the need for regulatory structures capable of protecting users while maintaining attractive and competitive legal alternatives.
Next Steps or Impact
Africa Safer Gambling Week will become an annual African iGaming Alliance initiative.
The programme will seek to expand cooperation between regulators, operators and industry associations while strengthening public education and player-protection initiatives.
The inaugural edition also reflects a broader shift across African gaming towards turning cross-border cooperation into tangible policies covering safer gambling, channelisation and consumer protection.
Editó: @fonta
