African iGaming Alliance calls for data-led approach to Africa’s US$17.7bn illegal online gambling
AiA’s CEO Peter Emolemo Kesitilwe highlighted the scale of unregulated gambling and called for stronger market monitoring at GRAF 2026.
Mozambique.- The African iGaming Alliance (AiA) has urged regulators across Africa to combine market intelligence, payment monitoring and cross-border cooperation to curb illegal online gambling. The call was made by the alliance’s CEO, Peter Emolemo Kesitilwe, during GRAF 2026 in Maputo, Mozambique, where he presented a session titled “Illegal Online Gambling in Africa: Data-Driven Strategies for Channelisation and Consumer Protection”.
Kesitilwe cited figures from Gaming Compliance International’s 2025 Africa Market Report, which estimated that online gambling generated US$23 billion in gross gaming revenue (GGR) across the continent. About 77 per cent of the estimated GGR, or roughly US$17.7 billion, was generated outside locally regulated channels, according to the report. It also estimated that 215 million people interacted with online gambling and identified 4,129 unregulated operators targeting consumers across all 54 African countries.
Kesitilwe said regulators should measure both regulated and unregulated activity to establish a clearer picture of their markets. He also called for licensed operators to remain competitive in areas such as products, pricing, payment options and accessibility. He said the aim should be to make regulated platforms competitive enough to retain consumers, rather than relying solely on enforcement against offshore and unlicensed operators.
The presentation also examined the role of technology in detecting illegal gambling activity. Kesitilwe said payment intelligence could help regulators identify financial transactions linked to unregulated operators and disrupt the commercial networks supporting them.
The alliance also called for stronger cooperation between regulators and minimum digital consumer-protection standards to address operators targeting consumers across multiple jurisdictions.
The GRAF presentation came a week after the AiA launched its responsible gambling week across Africa, which focused on promoting safer gambling practices and greater awareness of responsible gambling among consumers and industry stakeholders.
