Eswatini government targets third-quarter tabling of long-awaited Gaming Act Regulations
The draft regulations aim to streamline licensing, strengthen compliance and improve regulatory oversight of Eswatini’s gambling sector.
Eswatini.- The Eswatini government has set a target to table the country’s long-awaited Gaming Act Regulations during the third quarter of the current financial year, marking a key milestone in efforts to implement the country’s gambling regulatory framework.
Speaking in Parliament on July 1, Tourism and Environmental Affairs minister Jane Simelane said the regulations would be tabled during the third quarter of the current financial year after lawmakers questioned the prolonged delay in finalising them despite the Gaming Act already being in force, according to the Times of Eswatini.
Responding to questions from Lobamba Lomdzala MP Marwick Khumalo, Simelane said the draft regulations had already been prepared but required extensive stakeholder consultations because of the “complexity of the gaming industry”. She said the latest validation workshop, which began on June 16, had not been completed because of the volume of issues under consideration, including the schedule of fees. The validation exercise was scheduled to continue on July 2, with Simelane assuring Parliament that the regulations would be tabled during the third quarter of the current financial year.
During the parliamentary debate, Khumalo questioned why gaming licences continued to be issued before the regulations had been finalised, arguing that operating under the Act without supporting regulations left Eswatini’s legal framework incomplete.
In response, Simelane reiterated her commitment to completing the process despite financial challenges facing the ministry. Speaker Jabulani Mabuza subsequently noted the minister’s formal assurance that the regulations would be presented to Parliament within the promised timeframe.
Draft regulations take shape
The parliamentary debate built on issues discussed during the June 2026 validation process, where Ministry of Tourism and Environmental Affairs Legal Advisor Nonophile Mavuso outlined how the draft regulations are expected to improve the regulation of Eswatini’s gambling sector, according to Independent News Eswatini.
Mavuso said the draft regulations include a detailed schedule of fees that is expected to help the Ministry and the Gaming Board process licence applications and renewals more efficiently. She said the absence of prescribed fees has resulted in delays to licence applications and renewals, causing frustration among operators and applicants.
She added that the framework is intended to streamline regulatory processes rather than introduce new licence categories, with the aim of improving efficiency and strengthening compliance across Eswatini’s regulated gambling sector.
During the June 2026 stakeholder consultations, officials and industry representatives also discussed proposed responsible gambling measures, including self-exclusion provisions that would allow players to voluntarily exclude themselves from gambling through a framework administered by the Gaming Board. Stakeholders also called for greater clarity on how self-exclusion periods should be applied once the regulations take effect. The measures remain under consultation as part of the draft regulations.
The parliamentary commitment marks the next step towards finalising Eswatini’s gambling regulatory framework, with the draft regulations set to be tabled after the stakeholder validation process concludes. If adopted by Parliament, the regulations will provide the operational framework needed to implement the Gaming Act, introducing a formal fee structure while strengthening compliance and regulatory oversight of Eswatini’s regulated gambling sector.
