NEAL WARNS AS GAMBLING TAKES OVER IN ESWATINI

MBABANE - Minister of Finance Neal Rijkenberg has raised concerns over the growing popularity of gambling in the country, attributing its rise to the influence of social media.

Rijkenberg cautioned emaSwati about the addictive nature of gambling, warning that it can quickly consume their finances if not approached responsibly. He urged the public to exercise caution and be mindful of the risks associated with this trend.The minister made these remarks in their weekly finance focus where he encouraged emaSwati to make informed decisions regarding their spending and investments, especially as the festive season approaches.

Gamblers

The minister’s advice follows reports that in a space of one year, online gamblers in the country have increased by at least 75 per cent. This raised concerns among members of the public in some sectors, who believe that this is a result of the high unemployment rate in the country, which stands at 35.4 per cent.According to information shared by the Ministry of Tourism and Environmental Affairs, there were 220 000 registered online gaming users in April 2023 and 60 000 of those were active. In this context, active is defined as a user who placed at least one bet and one deposit in a given month. In April 2024, the figure ballooned to 385 000 registered online gaming users and 73 000 of them were active. This depicts an increase of 165 000 (75 per cent) online gaming users in a space of a year.  The current registered online gaming users represent at least 25 per cent of the entire population, who opt for online gambling to make a quick buck.

It should be mentioned that the ministry collected over E9 million in levies from bookmakers and E48 000 in annual licence fees in the financial year 2023/24, as revealed by Communications Officer Baphelele Vilakati. Eswatini has at least three online gaming sites, which are MulaSport, eBet, 8Bet and the recently launched DiskiBet. Online gambling is any kind of gambling conducted on the internet and this includes virtual poker, casinos and sports betting. One of South Africa’s biggest unsecured lenders, Capitec, said in its results for the six months to end-August 2023, gambling transactions increased 35 per cent year-on-year, ‘putting further strain on household cash flow’. An increasing number of consumers are resorting to gambling in a desperate attempt to lay their hands on cash, as the credit market in South Africa tightens in response to high bad debts, results from Capitec show.

Bonuses

According to Rijkenberg, it is the time of the year where people get bonuses and 13th cheque for Christmas. Rijkenberg said by this time of the year, people have a little bit of cash at their disposal. He explained that this is the moment where emaSwati are promised higher returns for their monies invested with guaranteed returns. The minister warned that higher returns come with higher risks at the same time, low returns sometimes come with no risks and people need to be careful. Adding, he stated that the country does allow things like gambling and selling of alcohol, but the fact is, licensing it does not mean it is good.

According to the minister, gambling has taken over in Eswatini and becoming more popular because of social media platforms.He warned emaSwati that gambling is addictive. “Once it gets hold of you, it can absolutely finish your money, as much as we allow it in the country. EmaSwati should be careful that they do not get addicted to it,” he warned. He went on to state that once one is addicted, it controls that individual and they can no longer help themselves.

Addicted

“Once you are addicted, it has got control over you. You need some help from above or help from friends to get out of it. People need to be very careful. One can say, it is fun, they are just playing with it but gambling is addictive and one needs to be very careful that they do not get sucked into it,” the minister warned.Furthermore, Rijkenberg mentioned that there is nothing wrong with all these things, but the problem is when one gets sucked into it and, that becomes very dangerous, affecting their finances terribly.

He further warned that people should be careful where they place their money and what they do with it.“This is the time where one can also try to reduce debt. People should consider reducing their debt levels, to give themselves breathing room going to the future,” Rijkenberg said.On another note, the minister mentioned that as a ministry, they had been taking the budget to the people through consultations. He said this followed Sibaya submissions where emaSwati shared a strong desire to feel included in the budget.According to Rijkenberg, they are currently holding meetings on the ground with Tinkhundla Councils and chiefs/ bantfwabenkhosi on the budget.

Inputs

He reminded emaSwati that the country has a good process in place for one to make inputs, not only on the budget but anything going on in the country.He shared that emaSwati at the grassroots level could engage the tinkhundla councils and their submission can be brought to the House of Assembly through Members of Parliament (MPs).The budget consultations are conducted by the Planning and Budget Committee (PBC), a governmental body formed by the Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Economic Planning and Development and the Ministry of Public Service, tasked with overseeing the development and implementation of the national budget. This initiative involves educating chiefs and tinkhundla councils about the budget formulation process and relevant government legislation.

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