Gambling is flourishing in Ghana, with about half of the adult population actively involved in one form of gambling or the other.
But how big is the online gambling industry in Ghana?
The simple answer to this question is very big- but there is still plenty of potential for improvement. The current trend suggests that the industry will get even bigger in the coming years.
Ghana is benefiting from a continent-wide boom in gambling, with factors such as better financial inclusivity and internet accessibility aiding the sharp growth of the industry in Africa.
While Ghana has picked up pace in the last few years, it is still well short of being the top gambling market in Africa. That position is occupied by South Africa, Nigeria and Kenya.
Ghana is among the league of nations stationed in the next strata after the continent’s Big Three.
Realistically, it will be very difficult for Ghana to usurp South Africa, Nigeria and Kenya, particularly because of the country’s relatively lower population, but the West African nation is definitely giving it a good go!
Ghana is one of the most liberal gambling nations in Africa, with the law endorsing sports betting, casino games and lottery.
Ghana’s most recent gambling law is the Gaming Act of 2006. This Act paved the way for the establishment of the Gaming Commission of Ghana, which oversees sports betting and casinos in the country.
The West African nation houses quite a few land-based casinos, with the capital, Accra alone having more than six. That is a lot; by West African standards.
However, despite the comparative prevalence of casinos, most Ghanaian gamblers are more into sports betting, especially football betting.
Driven by the country’s love for football, football betting has been at the heart of the gambling explosion in Ghana. The advent of online sports betting sites like Melbet Ghana has also played a significant role in the rapid rise in the betting numbers in Ghana.
A few years ago, thousands of Ghanaian bettors would frequently visit physical betting shops to place their bets, but those shops have effectively been replaced by online betting sites, which can be accessed from all sorts of devices.
Even with the most basic smartphone, you can sign up on a sports betting site in Ghana and start placing bets. It also helps that depositing money on betting sites has become so easy, with many bookies offering popular payment methods like MTN, Vodafone and Airtel Tigo.
While Ghanaian laws endorse land-based betting and casinos, they are unclear about online gambling.
This grey area has allowed many betting sites, whether licensed or unlicensed, to offer their services to Ghanaian players online.
Hence, the next step for Ghana’s betting authorities is to find a way to regulate the country’s online space.
If they can do that, not only will they protect bettors from shady betting sites and online casinos, they also stand to make even more money via fees and taxes from these betting sites.
The Ghanaian gambling industry has become a multi-million-dollar sector, and it is not about to slow down any time soon.
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