Director-General of the National Lottery Authority(NLA), Mr. Samuel Awuku has announced measures put in place to stabilize and raise revenue for his outfit.

In a brief report at the State of Specified Entries engagement, Mr. Awuku revealed that he met a debt of GHS15 million in unpaid wins upon assumption of office but efforts have been made to clear a greater part of the debt with plans in place to clear the outstanding debt.

One of the initiatives implemented to ease the burden of claiming wins is the development of Instant Pay with the shortcode 3891000# which enables players to instantly redeem wins of up to GHS 1,200 after the draw.

In partnership with the Corporate Lotto Marketing Companies (LMCs), Prize Payment Centers have also been instituted in Regional offices nationwide for wins up to GHS 12,000.

Mr. Awuku also revealed that the NLA Governing Board, together with the Authority, has renegotiated the contract with KGL Group to GHS 55million in 2022, with GHS 2 million supporting their Good Causes Foundation and GHS 3 million going into Stabilization Fund for their LMCs.

The deal has also been renegotiated by GHS65 million for 2023.

In addition, the National Lotteries Authority has begun exporting its games to other countries for royalties.

The Authority has already established partnerships with Ivory Coast and Nigeria, with royalties of GHS 18 million and GHS 13 million respectively expected to be paid for drawing their games online through KGL Group.

He further announced the licensing of Private Lotto Operators (PLOs) as part of efforts to sanitize the lottery space and generate revenue for national development.

PLOs who operate under the framework of the National Lotto Act, 2006 (Act 722) pay a sum of GHS1.5millon while those who operate under the Veterans Administration Ghana Act, 2012 (Act 844) pay a sum of GHS 500,000, PLOs are also required to pay a fixed figure to support the Good Causes Foundation.

To bring in more revenue, the National Lotteries Authority has signed on to new third-party collaborators, including Zeta Technologies, Blue Star Hi-Tech Company Limited, and Fortune Synergy.

Talks are also underway with Supreme Ventures, the biggest lottery operator in the Caribbean, to introduce new games.

In line with the World Lottery Authority Standards, the National Lottery Authority is expected to purchase new draw machines by the end of April to phase out its over 25-year-old draw machines.

Multiple draws are also set to be launched by the first week of May.

Community draws have also been introduced to create moments of excitement and demystify the myth surrounding the draw process and their games.

Draws will be held in the morning, afternoon, and evening to enable people to observe the process.

Meanwhile, Sammy Awuku has emphasized that these initiatives have contributed significantly to the improvement of revenue for the National Lottery Authority.

Source/Sompaonline.com/Nana Yaw Boamah