There has been a key proposal in the Kenyan market by the Cabinet Secretary for National Treasury and Economic Planning, which outlined the potential economic benefits of increasing tax on betting in the region.
Changes arrive as the landscape for Africa grows increasingly competitive and a larger number of eyes are fixated upon the region as one for potential expansion.
Specifically looking at the gaming sector, the plans outlined a potential rise from 12.5% to 15%, leading to a warning that these tax increases could have a negative impact on the prices for consumers.
Furthermore, the industry has also raised the threat of growing the black market as a result of the proposals, which would have a tightening effect on the regulated market.
Amplifying these concerns are other aspects of the bill, such as the potential to limit advertising from the gambling sector.
It comes amidst a backdrop of challenges for the gaming industry in Africa as concerns have been raised over the potential growth of gambling harms amongst African consumers. The ambition of bringing gambling harm numbers down is a priority for the government at this time.
A change from 12.5% to 15% was also put forward for the lottery sector, whilst the same rise was proposed for the prize competition vertical.
Importantly for the African market, it was also proposed that taxes on money transfer services could grow from 15% to 20%, further intensifying the pressure on the gambling operators in the area.
A potential increase follows efforts from the government to mount pressure on gambling as the treasury in Kenya previously implied it would raise the taxes from the industry in its previous budget, earlier in the year.
Previous proposals, however, had pitched the industry shift from 12.5% in taxes to 20%. These came in the middle of the year when the government cited protecting young people’s exposure as crucial.
