{"id":11473,"date":"2025-10-27T08:29:33","date_gmt":"2025-10-27T11:29:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/?p=11473"},"modified":"2026-04-19T12:29:33","modified_gmt":"2026-04-19T15:29:33","slug":"nigerias-lagos-gaming-authority-wins-prestigious-iagr-2025-regulatory-innovation-award-in-canada","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/nigerias-lagos-gaming-authority-wins-prestigious-iagr-2025-regulatory-innovation-award-in-canada","title":{"rendered":"Nigeria\u2019s Lagos Gaming Authority wins prestigious IAGR 2025 Regulatory Innovation Award in Canada"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

LSLGA honoured for its pioneering SAFEPLAY initiative, setting a benchmark for responsible gambling across Africa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Nigeria.- Nigeria\u2019s Lagos State Lotteries and Gaming Authority<\/strong> (LSLGA) has won the Regulatory Innovation Award<\/strong> for its SAFEPLAY <\/strong>initiative at the 2025 International Regulatory Awards<\/strong> in Toronto, Canada. The award was presented by the International Association of Gaming Regulators <\/strong>(IAGR), recognising LSLGA\u2019s efforts to strengthen consumer protection in gaming.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

SAFEPLAY is Nigeria\u2019s first program that allows players to exclude<\/strong> themselves from multiple gaming operators<\/strong> at once, helping to prevent problem gambling. Centrally managed by LSLGA and fully integrated with licensed operators\u2019 systems<\/strong>, it provides a consistent, replicable framework<\/strong> for responsible gambling and serves as a model for other regulators in Africa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

LSLGA CEO Bashir Abiola-Are<\/strong> said, according to an IAGR statement: \u201cWe are honoured to receive the IAGR Regulatory Innovation Award for our SAFEPLAY initiative. This recognition<\/strong> reaffirms our commitment to responsible gambling, player protection<\/strong> and data-driven<\/strong> regulation that puts the welfare of Lagos residents at the heart of our innovation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Benchmarking responsible gambling in Africa<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The award was presented by IAGR Vice President Brian Krolicki<\/strong>, with the LSLGA team attending the conference. According to IAGR President Ben Haden<\/strong>, awardees were selected based on \u201cmeasurable progress and sustainable outcomes<\/strong>\u201d, clear problem definitions, robust interventions and evidence of impact. He added that the Regulatory Innovation Award highlights thoughtful reforms and targeted innovations that improve consumer protection and market integrity<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

SAFEPLAY reflects Lagos State\u2019s broader commitment<\/strong> to responsible gaming and regulatory transparency. Backed by Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu<\/strong>, the initiative connects self-exclusion measures across operators, strengthening enforcement and showcasing Lagos as a leader in player protection in Africa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The award highlights Nigeria\u2019s leadership<\/strong> in responsible gaming. SAFEPLAY shows how Lagos is setting a benchmark for player protection and regulatory innovation across Africa.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n\t\t\tSee also:<\/span><\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\t\"\"<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\tSee also:<\/span> Lagos Gaming Authority sets record straight on betting operator list<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

LSLGA honoured for its pioneering SAFEPLAY initiative, setting a benchmark for responsible gambling across Africa.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2809,"featured_media":11474,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"is_press_release":false,"is_interview":false,"is_opinion":false,"focusai_summary":"The Lagos State Lotteries and Gaming Authority (LSLGA) has been awarded the IAGR Regulatory Innovation Award for its SAFEPLAY initiative, a pioneering multi-operator self-exclusion program in Nigeria. This recognition underscores LSLGA's commitment to advanced responsible gambling frameworks and consumer protection, establishing a replicable model for other African jurisdictions. The initiative highlights Lagos State's leadership in data-driven regulation and market integrity.","focusai_entities":"Lagos State Lotteries and Gaming Authority (LSLGA), International Association of Gaming Regulators (IAGR), Bashir Abiola-Are, Brian Krolicki, Ben Haden, Babajide Sanwo-Olu","focusai_location":"Nigeria, Lagos, Toronto, Canada, Africa","focusai_target_profile":"ceo_executive (0.9), regulator (1.0), compliance_legal (0.95), operator_casino (0.9), affiliate_publisher (0.7), product_ux (0.8), tech_data (0.9), marketing_crm (0.75), investor_analyst (0.9), supplier_vendor (0.8), journalist_researcher (0.95)","focusai_suggestions":[{"label":"SAFEPLAY Integration Challenges?","query":"What are the specific technical and data integration challenges for licensed operators connecting to the SAFEPLAY system, particularly concerning real-time data synchronization and API standards?"},{"label":"Measuring SAFEPLAY Efficacy?","query":"How will the LSLGA measure the long-term efficacy and impact of SAFEPLAY on problem gambling prevalence, player protection outcomes, and overall market integrity in Lagos State?"}],"footnotes":""},"categories":[60019,60012],"tags":[1593],"class_list":["post-11473","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-regulation-news","category-west-africa","tag-responsible-gambling"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11473","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2809"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11473"}],"version-history":[{"count":17,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11473\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11514,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11473\/revisions\/11514"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11474"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11473"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11473"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11473"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}