{"id":12110,"date":"2025-11-04T08:24:31","date_gmt":"2025-11-04T11:24:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/?p=12110"},"modified":"2026-04-19T12:12:08","modified_gmt":"2026-04-19T15:12:08","slug":"cote-divoire-launches-national-platform-to-crack-down-on-illegal-gambling","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/cote-divoire-launches-national-platform-to-crack-down-on-illegal-gambling","title":{"rendered":"LONACI-backed national platform launched to combat illegal gambling in C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Government approves public-private partnership to centralise all LONACI-regulated games, enhance oversight and curb illegal gambling.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<!--more-->\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">C\u00f4te\u202fd\u2019Ivoire.- The government of <strong>C\u00f4te\u202fd\u2019Ivoire <\/strong>has taken a major step to strengthen regulation of the country\u2019s <strong>gambling sector<\/strong>. At its <strong>Council of Ministers <\/strong>on October\u202f1, a <strong>decree<\/strong> was adopted approving a <strong>public-private partnership <\/strong>(PPP) contract with<strong> AFITECH\u202fCI<\/strong> to establish a national centralisation platform for the regulation of games of chance, concessioned to the <strong>National Lottery of C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire<\/strong> (LONACI).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The decree was published on the <strong>Presidency<\/strong> of C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire\u2019s official website, providing an authoritative account of <strong>government decisions<\/strong> and policies announced during the Council of Ministers meeting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The communication states: \u201cThe Council adopted the decree approving the Public-Private Partnership Contract for the Financing, Design, Supply, Implementation and Operation of a <strong>Centralisation Platform<\/strong> for the <strong>Operation and Regulation<\/strong> of <strong>games<\/strong> granted to LONACI. This decree approves the agreement signed with the operator AFITECH\u202fCI and commits its implementation in accordance with the<strong> legislation<\/strong> in force regarding Public-Private Partnership Contracts.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A report by Le Mandat Express described the platform as \u201ca new national centralisation platform for games of chance licensed to LONACI\u201d, with objectives including <strong>strengthening oversight<\/strong> of monetary flows, protecting minors, combating <strong>illicit gambling<\/strong> and preventing gambling <strong>addiction<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Rapid growth and digital boom in gambling<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The move comes amid rapid growth in the gambling sector. Estimates from LONACI and industry operators place the 2025 sports betting market at <strong>CFA50bn\u202f(\u20ac76m)<\/strong>, with annual growth exceeding 15\u202fper cent since 2022.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The accelerated digitalisation of the gambling sector has transformed how players engage with games, a trend noted by industry experts. Sidick Bakayoko, Founder of Paradise Game, said: \u201cToday, <strong>online betting<\/strong> attracts more and more <strong>consumers<\/strong>, mainly because of its <strong>accessibility<\/strong>. Thanks to digital technology, it is easier and faster to place bets. Players even feel they have <strong>more contro<\/strong>l over their choices compared to traditional games of chance.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The LONACI Foundation continues to invest in <strong>social initiatives<\/strong>. In October\u202f2025, it distributed FCFA900m\u202f(\u20ac1.37m) to support <strong>16 community projects<\/strong>, including health and water infrastructure, demonstrating the lottery\u2019s contribution to <strong>social development<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n<div id=\"see-also-container\">\n\t\t\t<span class=\"see-also-label\">See also:<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"related-article\">\n\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"related-article__thumbnail\" src=\"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2025\/10\/SLOTS-BURNT--300x200.jpg\" alt=\"\"><\/p>\n<p class=\"related-article__text\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"see-also-label-strong\">See also:<\/span> <a href='https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/gambling-regulatory-authority-of-cote-divoire-destroys-over-100-illegal-slot-machines'>Gambling Regulatory Authority of C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire destroys more than 100 illegal slot machines<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Government approves public-private partnership to centralise all LONACI-regulated games, enhance oversight and curb illegal gambling.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2809,"featured_media":12116,"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 C\u00f4te d'Ivoire government has approved a public-private partnership with AFITECH CI to establish a national centralisation platform for games of chance regulated by LONACI. This initiative aims to enhance regulatory oversight, combat illicit gambling, protect minors, and prevent addiction amidst the rapid digitalisation and growth of the country's gambling sector. The platform will centralize operations and regulation, addressing market expansion and associated risks.","focusai_entities":"LONACI, AFITECH CI, Government of C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire, Paradise Game, Sidick Bakayoko","focusai_location":"C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire","focusai_target_profile":"ceo_executive (0.9), regulator (1.0), compliance_legal (0.9), operator_casino (0.9), affiliate_publisher (0.7), tech_data (0.9), payments_fraud_aml (0.9), investor_analyst (0.9), supplier_vendor (0.8), journalist_researcher (0.9)","focusai_suggestions":[{"label":"Operator Integration Challenges","query":"What are the anticipated technical and operational integration challenges for existing LONACI-licensed operators in adapting to the new national centralisation platform, and what support mechanisms will be provided?"},{"label":"PPP Financial Structure","query":"What are the financial terms and revenue-sharing mechanisms of the public-private partnership between the Government of C\u00f4te d'Ivoire, LONACI, and AFITECH CI, particularly concerning the platform's operational costs and revenue generation?"}],"footnotes":""},"categories":[60019,60012],"tags":[78],"class_list":["post-12110","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-regulation-news","category-west-africa","tag-sports-betting"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12110","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=12110"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12110\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12146,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12110\/revisions\/12146"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12116"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12110"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12110"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/focusgn.com\/africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12110"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}