Namibia lottery chief backs ALGA’s call for greater African gaming collaboration ahead of CEOs Forum 2026
The association says stronger cooperation is needed to tackle regulatory fragmentation and improve player protection across the continent.
Namibia.- Namibia’s Lotteries Board CEO, John Shimaneni, has backed the African Lotteries & Gaming Association’s (ALGA) call for greater collaboration across Africa’s lottery and gaming sector, saying sharing opportunities and failures can help emerging markets avoid repeating costly mistakes.
In a recent message ahead of its CEOs Forum 2026, ALGA highlighted Shimaneni’s views on the importance of bringing industry leaders together to exchange knowledge and experiences. “The Forum will assist us to share opportunities and failures, helping new players avoid making the same mistakes,” said Shimaneni.
The CEOs Forum 2026 will take place in Durban, South Africa, from September 1 to 4 and aims to bring together more than 23 regulators from across Africa, alongside lottery authorities, operators, policymakers, innovators and other key stakeholders. The association is positioning the event as a platform to advance regulatory harmonisation, responsible gambling, digital transformation and cross-border collaboration as gaming markets continue to evolve across the continent.
Shimaneni has previously called for greater collaboration across Africa’s lottery and gaming sector. Speaking at ALGA’s 2025 CEOs Forum, he called for an“Africanised” lottery and gaming sector tailored to the continent’s unique social and economic realities. He urged regulators and lottery operators to share lessons learned so emerging markets could avoid repeating mistakes while developing gaming models that better serve African communities.
The association also credited its CEO Musa Mngadi, with playing a key role in the conception and growth of the CEOs Forum, saying the initiative reflects his belief that Africa’s progress is accelerated when regulators and industry stakeholders work together.
Mngadi said: “Our success is defined by the appetite of our regulators and all our stakeholders to unify and collaborate with each other, knowing that as a collective we can achieve so much more for our African people.”
According to ALGA, Africa continues to face fragmented regulation and inconsistent player protection frameworks. The association said the CEOs Forum was conceived to encourage meaningful collaboration between jurisdictions with different regulatory frameworks and levels of market maturity while helping the industry move away from operating in silos.
