President Ruto Appoints a Taskforce to Establish a National Lottery

President Ruto has appointed a taskforce on the establishment of a National Lottery.

The Presidential Taskforce is structured in two tiers namely; the Steering Committee and the Technical Committee, according to a circular dated February 17th.

The steering committee will be chaired by billionaire Narendra Raval, who will be deputized by Gideon Thuranira. Dr. Linda Musumba will chair the technical committee.

The taskforce is expected to undertake a comprehensive review of the best practices on the establishment of national lotteries in other jurisdictions and develop a policy and implementation plan to guide the establishment and operationalization of the National Lottery in Kenya.

It will also facilitate the necessary consultations with all stakeholders in the country on the establishment of a National Lottery and examine the existing administrative, institutional, policy, and legislative structures and systems in the betting and gaming industry.

In addition, the team will recommend comprehensive reforms to support and facilitate a sustainable framework for the implementation and operation of the National Lottery.

It will also develop a prioritized implementation matrix outlining the immediate, medium, and long-term sectoral reforms and the attendant budgetary requirements necessary for the efficient operation of the National Lottery among other duties.

The Secretariat of the Taskforce will be domiciled at the Office of the President.

Kenya does not have a national lottery but there are a number of public lotteries such as the Kenya Charity Sweepstake and Win Lotto.

A national lottery is a government-run program raising money for the arts, sports, and charities by selling numbered tickets and giving prizes to holders of numbers drawn at random.

In the United States, national lotteries are key avenues to mobilize funds for states who run popular lotteries such as Mega Millions and Powerball.

The UK’s Gambling Commission similarly runs the National Lottery which was established in 1994.