South Africa’s rapid expansion in gambling, particularly online betting, is placing growing pressure on the country’s main safety net for people harmed by gambling. While demand for counselling, education, and prevention services continues to rise, the Foundation’s resources remain tightly constrained by a funding model that has not kept pace with the scale of the industry.
The Foundation, established under the Companies Act, operates the National Responsible Gambling Programme (NRGP), which provides free treatment and counselling services across the country. It is funded by contributions from the gambling industry, capped at 0.1% of the industry’s Gross Gambling Revenue (GGR).
At a time when gambling turnover has reached unprecedented levels, this cap is increasingly out of step with reality.
A widening funding gap
Income has grown in absolute terms, but still falls well short of what should be available under the existing regulations. “The National Responsible Gambling Programme’s (NRGP) income collections increased due to the growth of the betting sector and have reached over R40 million for the first time in the Foundation’s history,” Sibongile Simelane-Quntana, Executive Director of the SARGF, explained during a recent interview with SiGMA News. However, the shortfall remains stark. “In the 2023/24 financial year, the National Gambling Board published national GGRs of R59.3 billion. The Foundation only managed to collect about R41 million, showing a shortfall of R18.3 million,” she added.
According to Simelane-Quntana, “this highlights some of the challenges the Foundation is faced with, as some operators and regulators are not committed to the contributions towards the NRGP and benefit commercially from using the National Responsible Gambling Programme’s toll-free counselling line and tag line for advertising compliance.”
The result, she argues, is a system where responsibility messaging is widely used, but not always fully supported.
Rising demand, limited capacity
Despite these constraints, the NRGP has reached tens of thousands of people amid the rapid growth of South Africa’s gambling sector. “Over the past two decades, the Foundation has reached more than 24,000 individuals,” Simelane-Quntana explained. But measuring long-term outcomes remains difficult. “There is currently no standardised matrix available to measure long-term recovery among individuals who have received counselling or treatment,” she added, citing the “complex and multifaceted nature” of gambling harm, often linked to mental health conditions such as depression, anxiety and substance abuse.
Instead, the Foundation relies on indirect indicators. “One of the most meaningful connections observed is the relationship between the Foundation’s public awareness and prevention campaigns and the number of individuals who subsequently seek support,” Simelane-Quntana said, noting increases in calls to its toll-free helpline after outreach events.
Ensuring nationwide access also stretches resources. The NRGP currently works with “over 80 treatment professionals (Psychologists, Social Workers, registered Counsellors) in all 9 provinces,” and partners with provincial licensing authorities to reach rural and underserved communities.
Digital gambling, old constraints
The shift to online and mobile gambling has further complicated the picture. “With the rise of online and mobile gambling, the Foundation recognises the need to evolve its responsible gambling strategies,” Simelane-Quntana said, particularly for “university students and tech-savvy young adults”.
But competing in the digital space is costly. “The scale and sophistication of online gambling operators, who command significant resources and marketing reach, often overshadow responsible gambling messaging,” she warned. “The Foundation faces hurdles in terms of both funding and technical capacity, which can limit the scope and impact of digital interventions”.
For Simelane-Quntana, the imbalance is clear: a fast-growing gambling sector on one side, and a prevention system struggling to keep up on the other. While the Foundation has secured Public Benefit Organisation status and a Section 18A certificate to encourage donations, this alone will not close the gap.
As South Africa’s gambling market continues to expand, the Foundation is pressing for stronger regulatory commitment and more reliable funding flows. Without that, the country risks widening the divide between the scale of gambling-related harm and the resources available to address it.