The battle for the country’s biggest tender — the national lottery licence, worth about R180bn — is under way as 18 prospective bidders vie for the prize.
The submission for proposals closed on Saturday as the hunt for the fourth seven-year national lottery licence operator started.
The National Lottery Commission (NLC) says the first three operators, Uthingo, Gidani and current holders Ithuba, raised a combined R31.1bn for good causes between 2000 and 2023. About 27% of the revenue from ticket sales went to good causes and has funded more than 110,000 projects nationwide since the inception of the lottery in SA.
NLC commissioner Jodi Scholtz told the Sunday Times that Uthingo, the inaugural lottery operator, raised R7bn between 2000 and 2007 while Gidani brought in R11.4bn from 2007 to 2015 and Ithuba raised R12.7bn between 2015 and December 2023.
Scholtz said 18 entities had paid R55,000 for request for proposal [RFP] documents and were expected to submit bids by yesterday. The request was advertised in August.
“Evaluation and adjudication will immediately commence, culminating in the minister making an announcement on the successful bidder by September 1. The NLC will know the number of applicants only after the closing time,” Scholtz said.
“The RFP document imposes strict confidentiality undertakings on both the NLC and the applicants. This is required to ensure that the process is protected from any possible interference and to maintain its integrity,” Scholtz said.
Evaluation and adjudication will immediately commence, culminating in the minister making an announcement on the successful bidder by September 1
— NLC commissioner Jodi Scholtz
After receiving the report from the evaluation committee, the board will adjudicate the applications and make recommendations to trade, industry and competition minister Ebrahim Patel, who will have the final say.
The previous appointment of operators was mired in legal challenges. Gidani lodged several failed court applications against then trade and industry minister Rob Davies, challenging his decision to award the licence to Ithuba.
In 2007, the lottery was suspended for seven months after an announcement by then minister Mandisi Mpahlwa that the licence had been granted to Gidani with the inaugural operator, Uthingo, challenging the decision in court.
Scholtz said an evaluation committee consisting of financial, legal gaming and IT experts has been appointed to evaluate the latest proposals. “The NLC followed a rigorous recruitment process assisted by an agency specialising in placements in the gaming industry,” he said.
Current licence holder Ithuba has created more than 715-million winners and has paid out more than R27bn in cash prizes since it took over in 2015. It recorded the biggest jackpot of more than R232m, paid to one lucky Powerball winner in February 2019.
Since the lottery was launched 24 years ago, it has created 1,800 instant millionaires with cash prizes amounting to R54bn, says the NLC. Uthingo created 718 millionaires, while Gidani created 563 and Ithuba 520.
However, Ithuba is the bigger payer of jackpots since the top-10 biggest jackpots South Africa has ever seen, were hit during its time as operator.
This week, the winner of yet another big Powerball jackpot — R121m — claimed the prize after 19 consecutive rollovers.
Total lottery sales amounted to R109.2bn across all lottery operators since 2000, said the commission. Ithuba achieved R49.5bn in total sales while Gidani and Uthingo topped R27bn and R32.7bn respectively.
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.