South Africa’s National Gambling Board seeks new gambling study
The regulator wants to take a closer look at who is gambling, how they are playing and where problem gambling is emerging.
Key takeaways:
- NGB seeks fresh data on South Africa’s gambling habits as it prepares a national study into gambling participation and problem gambling.
- The research will cover all nine provinces and adults aged 18 and older, including gambling activity in rural and underserved communities.
- The findings could help shape future regulation by giving the NGB fresh evidence on player behaviour and problem gambling to support harm-mitigation measures.
South Africa.- South Africa’s National Gambling Board (NGB) has opened a tender for a new study into gambling and problem gambling, with research set to cover adults aged 18 and older across all nine provinces, including rural and underserved communities.
The tender, NGB 002(2026/2027), was published on October 2, 2026 and seeks a research provider to carry out the study and analyse the data collected.
The NGB wants the research to cover different forms of gambling and examine the demographic and behavioural characteristics of people who take part in gambling. It will also look at the severity of problem gambling and provide evidence to support recommendations on gambling regulation and harm mitigation.
The research provider will be responsible for gathering the data and carrying out the analysis, using a structured questionnaire as part of the survey. The final work will include the research findings, statistical analysis and a master dataset, along with the questionnaire and presentations for the NGB.
Bids close on October 27 at 11 am, while a compulsory briefing session for prospective bidders is scheduled for October 16 at 11 am.
The tender comes as the NGB continues to focus on responsible gambling and player protection. In August, the regulator ran a five-day outreach programme in the Western Cape, with sessions aimed at young people and young adults.
The campaign came against a backdrop of high gambling participation. NGB figures have put gambling participation at 65.7 per cent, while the industry generated R74.9bn (US$4.65bn) in gross gambling revenue.
The new research could give the regulator a clearer picture of who is gambling, the forms of gambling they are using and the extent of problem gambling across the country.
