The Bill – presently under review by the National Assembly’s Sports and Culture Committee<\/strong> – seeks to compel betting operators to contribute a portion of their profits to a state-run fund dedicated to the rehabilitation of gambling addicts<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Betting Control and Licensing Board (BCLB)<\/strong>, the industry watchdog, argued that while firms rake in billions, the burden of treating addiction has unfairly fallen on the taxpayer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt is unreasonable for the government to bear the cost of helping gambling addicts while betting companies continue to enjoy billions in profits,\u201d said BCLB Director Peter Mbugi<\/strong>, according to the Eastleigh Voice publication.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIn Kenya, helping those addicted to gambling has been left solely to the government, with betting companies claiming they\u2019ve paid taxes. Why should the government use its resources to solve a problem it didn\u2019t create? Betting firms must be held responsible.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Among the boldest proposals in the Bill is a “cooling system”<\/strong> that would limit individuals to just one bet per day<\/strong>, no matter the platform. To enforce this, the BCLB is calling for a centralised digital monitoring system that tracks all gambling activity in real time – an ambitious tool that would require strong legal backing and significant investment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThere\u2019s very little we can do without this monitoring system,\u201d Mbugi said, adding that the board currently lacks even basic resources to carry out enforcement operations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Kenya has seen a dramatic rise in betting, especially among youth, spurred by the easy accessibility of online platforms. Yet the legal framework, critics argue, remains frozen in time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The current Betting, Lotteries and Gaming Act <\/strong>dates back to 1966, an era when gambling was a brick-and-mortar affair.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBetting is no longer done in brick-and-mortar establishments. It\u2019s now online, on our phones. We need to shift from 1963\u2026that\u2019s how critical this new law is,\u201d Mbugi emphasised.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Committee Chairperson Dan Wanyama<\/strong> described the proposed reforms as “critical and reasonable”, confirming the Bill could be ready for presidential assent within days.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If passed, the Bill would not only modernise Kenya’s gambling laws but shift the financial and ethical responsibility for addiction squarely onto the industry’s shoulders.<\/p>\n\n\nOutdated Act of 1966<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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