LONASE trains agency managers on new digital winnings platform

The workshop in Mbour was aimed at helping agency managers support beneficiaries using the new digital payment solution.

Senegal.- The Senegal national lottery (LONASE) has trained agency managers on a new digital platform for processing winnings payments, as the state-owned lottery moves to strengthen the use of digital tools across its distribution network.

The two-day training workshop was held in Mbour on September 7 and 8 and was designed for managers responsible for LONASE agencies across the country. According to LONASE, the training focused on enabling agency managers to master the new winnings-payment platform and provide better assistance to beneficiaries using the digital solution.

The initiative puts agency managers at the centre of the transition, as they will be expected to help customers understand and use the new payment system when collecting their winnings.

The training comes as LONASE expands its use of digital technology across its gaming operations. In June, the national lottery launched LONASE Way, a locally developed online gaming platform created in partnership with Jaap Sénégal. The platform was presented as part of the operator’s response to the digital transformation of the gaming sector.

LONASE’s existing digital gaming arrangements already include electronic handling of certain winnings. Its published PMU terms state that winnings of up to FCFA2m can be withdrawn through an electronic wallet linked to a player’s account, while winnings above that amount are paid by cheque at LONASE’s headquarters.

The new platform appears to extend the organisation’s digital approach to the winnings-payment process, although LONASE has yet to publish further details on the platform’s launch timetable, the payment methods it supports or whether the new system will change the existing thresholds and procedures for collecting winnings.