South Africa’s gambling industry has reached a turnover of about R1.5 trillion, while the number of people seeking help for gambling problems has surged by 60%, according to the South African Responsible Gambling Foundation.
The organisation says the growth of digital gambling and widespread access is increasing the risk of people gambling irresponsibly.
Industry growth sparks concern
The Foundation’s Executive Director, Sibongile Simelane-Quntana, said the scale of gambling activity in the country is worrying.
“We should be worried… the industry reached about R1.5 trillion in the previous financial year,” she said.
Simelane-Quntana said this translated into gross gambling revenue of about R75 billion.
At the same time, the…