Portia Diteko, Botswana Gambling Authority: “One of our strengths in Botswana is that we don’t view gambling in isolation”

Portia Diteko spoke to Focus Gaming News about her work as Responsible Gambling Manager at Botswana’s Gambling Authority.

Exclusive interview.- Botswana has distinguished itself as one of the African countries with a model gaming regulatory industry, striking a remarkable balance between responsible gaming and healthy relationships with the sector’s main players. This has led it to be seen as an example to follow.

To find out more about the work of the Gambling Authority of Botswana, its responsible gambling campaigns, and its daily efforts to promote industry growth, Focus Gaming News spoke with Portia Diteko, the Authority’s responsible gambling manager.

Botswana’s Gambling Authority has been setting a new gold standard for progressive responsible gambling regulation. Can you explain how Botswana is becoming a continental leader in this regard, what’s the secret?

Thank you for saying that. I believe one of our greatest strengths is our legal framework. We have a very strong legal foundation, especially regarding responsible gambling. When our Gambling Act, regulations, and policy were developed, those involved clearly had a deep understanding of responsible gambling and a genuine desire to keep the country safe.

Our framework is very clear about what is required, how exclusions should be processed, and how counselling should be provided. Notably, our licensees are required to pay a 3.5 per cent levy towards responsible gambling, which is compulsory. The funds from this levy go a long way in developing and implementing our programmes and keeping our people safe.

Another key factor is the strong support from the government. We can approach the President’s office to discuss responsible gambling, and we are listened to. Having leaders who are genuinely interested in gaming and responsible gambling has been invaluable.

Additionally, we place great emphasis on research. Before implementing any responsible gambling initiative, we conduct research to determine what is valid, reliable, and applicable for Botswana. Every nation is different, and responsible gambling manifests differently across groups. Having our research unit is really helpful because it enables us to identify problem areas and determine the most effective interventions for our people.

You have previously stressed that responsible gambling is not anti-gambling. How do you think the regulator can strike that balance between taking a firm stance and ensuring that there is a sustainable, regulated industry?

You know, it’s very interesting. Responsible gambling is not anti-gambling. My educational background and work experience are in psychology and business administration, so I’ve balanced both the responsible gambling and the psychology, human safety and player side of things.

My point about responsible gambling not being anti-gambling is to help the licensees see that responsible gambling actually helps their businesses grow because if we don’t promote responsible gambling, players are more likely to become addicted. If players are addicted, they won’t come back. They’ll either be in rehab or have run out of money. This affects the long-term sustainability of the business.

I also wanted to raise awareness of the stigma surrounding problem gambling. I don’t know about your country or other countries, but there’s a lot of stigma based on what people see in problem gambling.

Responsible gambling is not anti-gambling. It’s about making the licence holders realise that if there’s a lot of problem gambling, people are going to be afraid of the industry, and no one will want to invest or become a new player. So, saying that responsible gambling is not anti-gambling is about making them realise the benefits of responsible gambling, and that it shouldn’t just be the responsibility of the regulator or family members of the players, but also the licence holders.

There was a campaign run by the regulator, “Motshameko o Phepa” (‘The game is fine’). How’s that? What was the idea behind it? How has it been received?

What we were going for here was to get the licences and, mainly, to help the community realise that there’s nothing wrong with gambling or gaming. It really depends on how you play. That will determine whether the consequences are negative or positive.

We conducted research before launching the campaign, and the results showed that many people in Botswana had a misconception about gambling. The majority believed it was a source of income. For example, someone might receive a small salary and think, “I’ll gamble to increase it.” Or a young person might win a tender and, instead of buying the necessary materials or paying workers, decide to gamble the money in hopes of increasing it.

That mindset was leading to problem gambling. So, we created this campaign to educate people and let them know that there’s absolutely nothing wrong with gambling, it’s just how you approach it that makes the difference. Are you playing in a way that leads to harm, like seeing gambling as a source of income and betting your whole salary? Or are you approaching it as a form of entertainment, going out with friends, playing responsibly, accepting a loss, and simply going back home? As part of this work, we travel across the country teaching people these principles and building skills.

My favourite part of the campaign is something we call “Dreams before Dices,” which focuses specifically on children under the age of 21. The legal gambling age in Botswana is 21, and our research revealed a high rate of underage gambling and gaming. The campaign targets young people and encourages them to focus on their dreams before even thinking about gambling. They will have time for gaming later when they’re older. As I said earlier, we travel the country to raise awareness. We speak with adults about responsible gambling, we engage with young people through “Dreams before Dices,” and we also involve community leaders.

In Botswana, our traditional leaders, called “dikgosi”, are like local chiefs. They are highly respected and influential within their communities. We collaborate with them to make sure the message reaches everyone and that people are encouraged to gamble responsibly.

So, that is the preventive side of the “Motshameko o Phepa” campaign. On the curative side, the research showed that 5 per cent of the population had a gambling problem at the time of the study. We’re currently conducting another study to see how that number has evolved. But what we realised was that we couldn’t just focus on prevention and ignore the 5 per cent already affected by problem gambling or addiction. So we developed a curative strategy. Using the funds I mentioned earlier, we now provide free counselling for people diagnosed with gambling addiction, and for their family members as well.

You also mentioned the importance of working with the industry, not against it. Do you have any mechanisms in place to encourage collaboration with operators?

Definitely, and that is actually one of our success factors, which I should have mentioned earlier: working closely with the industry. What I realised when I entered this sector, both in Botswana and globally, is that there was often a divide between the regulator and the licensee.

In some cases, the regulator was seen as the police, and the licensee as someone to be policed. What we did here in Botswana was build a relationship based on mutual respect, where we see each other as partners who want to grow the gambling industry in our country while keeping people safe.

Specifically, in terms of responsible gambling, we offer training to licensees. We’ve observed that by the time individuals reach out to us, the regulator, for help with problem gambling, it’s often already too late. However, licensees are in a better position to detect the early signs of problem gambling and to implement preventative measures within their facilities.

So, we developed what we call “Responsible Gambling First Aid Training”, where we equip employees of licensed operators with the skills to offer basic support. This includes pre-counselling or pre-treatment, the ability to identify signs of a gambling problem, and how to carry out crisis management before referring individuals to us.

Another initiative we have with our licensees is the organisation of scheduled consultative forums. These are periodic sessions where licensees come to the regulator to raise their concerns and make suggestions on how we can collaborate more effectively. They tell us where they think our weaknesses lie, and we look into the Act, the regulations, and the policies. It’s a platform for them to express their views and offer recommendations, and in turn, we do the same, providing feedback on how they can improve their services and maintain compliance with the law and regulations.

The key is that we are all on the same side. We all want the gambling industry to grow, to contribute positively to our country, and to ensure the safety of our players.

Do you also see opportunities for this kind of relationship and collaboration with other regional regulators? What benefits could that bring?

I would say yes and no. I think they would be in a better position to answer, but from what I have seen with regulators who do not have this type of relationship with their licences, it stems from the acts and regulations, where it is not very clear what the roles of the regulator and the licence are, and there are too many loopholes. For example, with one of the regulators I discussed, the issue was the responsible gambling levy. They are trying to protect players, yet licences don’t have to pay that levy. So it’s very difficult to finance problem gambling. There is a tug of war based on loopholes in the law and regulations. For me, the recommendation is always to get the law right, because the law will dispel a lot of confusion and tell us exactly what is and isn’t expected from both parties.

Do you think there are lessons that other regulators in the region could learn from Botswana’s model?

Yes, definitely. So basically, it’s about getting the law right and also having evidence-based practices. I’ve noticed that most of the time, we just want to do what we think is right, or what we’ve seen the other regulators do. But we don’t really get to understand our people. We don’t learn what their needs are. One thing I noticed about Botswana specifically was the stigma surrounding gambling. This stigma caused people to gamble in secret, and by the time they developed a problem, it was too late, or we could have identified the problem earlier. However, in discussions with other regulators, stigma is not even a problem. People just gamble openly and it’s not an issue in their country. So, one big lesson is to research your people, find out what their needs are, and base your programmes on that. Another thing is what we just discussed: collaborating with licences so that they don’t see us as an entity that needs to be policed, but rather as partners.

How do you see the imminent future of the industry? Do you think the industry will continue to grow, and are there any more legislative developments on the horizon?

Yes, definitely. We’re actually in the process of reviewing our Act. One thing about Botswana is that we want our laws to be dynamic. The gambling industry evolves very rapidly. Just a few years ago, we weren’t even talking about online platforms or artificial intelligence. So, we’re updating our legal framework to ensure that it keeps pace with these changes.

In terms of growth, I absolutely see potential. One of our strengths in Botswana is that we don’t view gambling in isolation. It’s not just about the player. We’ve closely linked gambling to our broader economic development strategy.

If you look at Botswana’s economic history — I’m not sure how familiar you are with it — but traditionally our economy has relied heavily on diamonds, beef, and tourism. Unfortunately, those sectors are currently underperforming. In response, our President and government have issued a call for other industries to step up and drive economic diversification.

As the gambling regulator, we’ve aligned ourselves with that national agenda. Gambling is no longer just about playing a game, it’s also about contributing to national development. When we issued calls for licence applications in areas like betting and online betting, we made it a requirement that any foreign applicant must partner with a Motswana [Citizen of Botswana]. This ensures that citizens are empowered and included in the economic benefits.

We also considered corporate social investment (CSI) as a key criterion. One of the conditions for your application to be approved, or even considered, is that you must give back to the country. That means contributing to national development and the economic empowerment of our people.

So yes, to answer your question directly: I definitely see the industry growing. Because in Botswana, gambling is not just about gambling, it’s about improving the lives of our people.