THE Department of Trade and Industry and the National Gambling Board will undertake a roadshow to create awareness about gambling, its socioeconomic consequences and how to gamble responsibly.
The department’s deputy director-general of consumer and corporate regulation, MacDonald Netshitenzhe, said gambling’s socioeconomic benefits were job creation and the sector’s contribution to the country’s GDP, but people needed to be educated about the disadvantages as well.
The roadshow "is aimed at encouraging people to gamble responsibly and within the legal limits", Netshitenzhe said.
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The roadshow will start in Bochum, Limpopo on Monday September 19 and end in Gauteng in November.
Netshitenzhe said the programme would also help people distinguish between licensed and unlicensed gambling operators, and identify symptoms of problematic gambling or addictive tendencies in those who gambled.
"We would like communities to become aware of legal and illegal gambling activities as well as penalties imposed by the National Gambling Act.
"We would also like them to know that operators also have responsibilities and obligations that they must comply with, in line with legislation," he said.
Caroline Kongwa, accounting authority of the National Gambling Board, said the roadshow would target areas where the board’s research had found gambling to be prevalent.
"The awareness roadshow will also focus on illegal (and online) gambling and the consequences of participation. The board remains aware and concerned about the existence and growth of illegal gambling in the country," she said.
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