Online Reporter
Judith Phiri, [email protected]
THE Lotteries and Gaming Board has achieved major milestones with collections funding key development projects across essential national sectors, making it a vital component of Zimbabwe’s socio-economic landscape.
Through the Lotteries and Gaming Fund, the Lotteries and Gaming Board has supported various community development projects, including infrastructure development, education and healthcare initiatives, arts and cultural development, preservation of heritage sites.
The revenue generated from gaming activities is used to support national socio economic development initiatives, improving the lives of Zimbabweans.
In an interview on the sidelines of the 66th edition of the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair (ZITF) 2026, Lotteries and Gaming Board Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Mr Godfrey Mutobaya highlighted some of the major milestones they have achieved to date.
“As the Lotteries and Gaming Board, we have done quite a number of projects targeting hard to reach areas across Zimbabwe. The thematic areas of corporate social responsibility that as a board we are mandated to look at by the Lotteries and Gaming Act are about eight, as prescribed by s(53)(2) of the Act.
“They cover areas such as the health sector, arts and cultural development, education, preservation of the environment and our heritage sites, national museum and monuments. Recently, Ratanyana Clinic in Matobo District, Matabeleland South was commissioned on April 17, a day before the Independence Day by our Honourable Vice President Col (Rtd) Dr KCD Mohadi.
“The board completed a project that was started 10 years ago and the community was hard-pressed and could not finish it. Like an angel we came to the scene and completed the clinic which was fully furnished with modern equipment,” he said.
“We are talking of modern hospital equipments which includes beds, stretchers, delivery bed, wheel chairs, latest automated health machines, medication was provided and now it’s fully functional. Further to just the clinic, we built a modern staff house, we ensured that the water supply is also in order by drilling an 80-meter borehole which is fully solarised. We also even provided solar for that clinic to ensure that the energy side is sorted.”
He said in line with evolving trends, they also put Starlink to improve the communication and technology to ensure that the clinic is not just accessible physically but connectivity wise as well.
Mr Mutobaya said they also built an Interpretive Centre at the battle site, where four children were brutally murdered in 1979. “So this for preserving our heritage and history that further generations even in posterity need to appreciate that this country was hard-won and also that there is a culture that we need to preserve,” he said.
Prior to that we did several projects which includes , construction of the Pupu Clinic project in Lupane, Matabeleland North Province in 2024 and it was commissioned by His excellency , President Cde Dr ED Mnangagwa. The clinic provides essential medical services to the local community, improving health outcomes and quality of life.”
“This is a testament to the fund’s commitme to improving healthcare services in rural areas. We also did the Harava Clinic Waiting Mother’s Shelter in Zaka, Masvingo, this project was meant to increase and enhance maternity health care for women. Before this project expecting mothers and the community at large had to travel long distances to Musiso or Ndanga Hospitals for maternity services.”
In the education sector, he said the Lotteries and Gaming Fund has financed and constructed Dandamira Primary School blocks and Kundai High School in Mazowe all in Mashonaland Central.
Mr Mutobaya said for Elim Primary School in Penhalonga, Manicaland, they constructed and fully furnished two classroom blocks.
He added. “For other schools we have also done multi-sports facilities that we have done even around Zimbabwe.
One of them in Manicaland is Herbert Chitepo multi-sports facility. There is also Mabhikwa Multipurpose Sports Facility in Matabeleland North that we did which houses netball, tennis and volleyball courts, among other developments.”
Mr Mutobaya said the board will continue to ensure that levies that they receive, they will invest them into social development activities which are meant to mitigate gambling harm effects, which accrue from punters who are not acting responsibly when they are doing their gaming activities.
He said the hospital facilities and clinics they have built are fully functional, they have psychologists and counselling sessions for people who have been affected by addictions that come when their passion overrides their reasoning, where people are chasing their losses, engaging in this activity of gaming or gambling as a source of livelihood.
“When you pursue gaming activity, sports betting and when you enter into casinos as a source of livelihood, you put pressure on your emotional intelligence, it needs much more to be stable in that regard,” he added.
“So as a board now, we come up with programmes to help those who have been affected by this gambling harm. Some of the ways that we do is to go through these health systems that we built.”
Mr Mutobaya said they also roll out serious public awareness campaigns, where the engage the fourth estate (media) to spread information that gaming or gambling is for entertainment.
He said gaming activities should give people pleasure and when pleasure is now causing distress to people, then one needs to know when to stop.
“It’s actually a signal that we have to disengage when you see what should give you fun causing you distress. So as a board, we are there to ensure that we regulate the system.
“The operators expect to see the environment as sustainable an be represented in the Whole of Government, matters ,” he said.
“We have done that even with the Ministry of Economic Development and Investment Promotion, where we discuss issues to do with taxes on the operators and recommend to the Ministry to re-look at some of the tax structures that we have even as a Government.”
Mr Mutobaya said on the other front, they engage and collaborate even with more health service providers to partner with them in this regard so that the citizenry benefits.
He said the board was excited to ensure that the industry properly functions and they were also engaging other tech providers to assist them with better systems that enable them to quickly identify the people who are affected by addictions.
“We have put in measures to flag certain areas that are above the expected fun levels. So as a board, we are really doing a lot. In line with evolving trends, where much of the activities now are going online, as a board we take note that we should be aligning ourselves to technological development that is happening,” he added.
“As a board we engaged in some benchmarking exercises and studies to see how other jurisdictions are dealing with this area to ensure that the operators and the communities and the punters are given a level playing field, where operators find it viable to continue offering the service.”
Mr Mutobaya said they will also ensure communities and citizens are a spoilt of choice and they know even when to stop when they are doing their gaming or gambling activities.
He said in the coming few months, they were going to automate the gaming environment so that the issues that are not in order as of now are put to bed.
“We are talking of a situation where responsible gambling activities need to be well-documented, where the people scientifically know when to stop.
“How do people know when to stop if there is no scientific and automated system that helps them to set limits and thresholds, in terms of the time and funds that they are spending on playing the games,” he said.
“So this system actually is a game-changer, it is going to transform the industry and it will become also easier for us, the regulators, to account and quantify the value of this industry.”
Mr Mutobaya said the Gaming Management Systems will enhance transparency to the industry, operators will know easily what is due to the Government in form of taxes and levies, industry valuation and growth will become easier to compute and assess.
He said they were addressing the manual processes of self-reporting and a number of changes were going to be coming through.
