54 Post Offices to sell NLA games, afternoon draw starts
By Christabel Oboshie ANNAN, Accra
The National Lottery Authority (NLA) has partnered Ghana Post to promote its games in selected 54 Post Offices around the country and introduced an afternoon draw called NoonRush.
The Partnership is to help the authority to expand in offering various brands of lotteries and other services to its customers.
NoonRush gives patrons of NLA Games multiple chances to win in a day as it can be played on NLA’s Point of sale terminals and the Online Channel,*959#.
Director General of NLA, Samuel Awuku said that the partnership finds expression in Section 23 of the National Lotto Act and LI 1948 which mandates the Authority to conduct draws at a given date, place and time.
He stated that Section 2(4) of the National Lotto Act also mandates the Authority to hold draws in collaboration with third parties, which is why the NLA agreed to the proposal by Ghana Post to host the NoonRush Draw on their premises.
He noted that the partnership will help the authority in selling its products at all Ghana Post Offices through Lotto Pay, a licensed lotto marketing company proposed by Ghana Post and approved by the NLA.
“Let me reiterate that Lotto Pay cannot conduct their own draws but is expected to sell the product of NLA at all the post offices designated by the Ghana Post Offices,” he explained.
Director General of NLA indicated that with the inclusion of the NoonRush Draw, there will now be three daily draws held by the NLA, with the Veterans Administration Ghana (VAG) Lotto Draw taking place at 10am, the NoonRush Draw taking place at 1pm and the Evening Draws taking place at 7:15pm giving customers numerous chances to win during the day.
He mentioned that his outfit has completed all the procedures for instructing the Ghana Post Tellers on marketing, promotion, and the nature of the draw and items.
Awuku said that the NoonRush Game will be available on NLA’s Point of Sale terminals and online channels, while the Draw will be held from Monday to Saturday.
He stated that NLA recently attained Level 2 Certification in Responsible Gaming from the World Lottery Association (WLA) and is working on achieving Level 3 by the end of the year.
“What this means is that we are supposed to abide by the tenet of the WLA in promoting responsible gaming. Persons below the age of 18 cannot participate in our games. And we believe that the Ghana Post will also ensure compliance as far as these instructions are concerned,” he stressed.
According to the Director General, holding multiple Draws daily is in conformity with the Authority’s obligations as a WLA member.
He noted that with the partnership, the two state-owned organisations will promote each other’s business and generate revenue for its respective organizations.
He added that while digitalization allows a cross-section of players to play from the comfort of their homes on smart devices and on Online Platforms, the Partnership Agreement will also enable NLA to bring its games closer to conservative players who are sentimentally attached to playing their games from the Point of Sale Terminals.
“To these players, you can now play our Games from your regular Lotto Marketing Companies and over 54 selected Post Offices nationwide” he added.
He urged Ghanaians to support the partnership by patronizing Ghana Post’s services and playing NLA’s Games for national development.
The Managing Director of Ghana Post Company Limited, Bice Osei Kuffour said that the partnership is an extension of the Ghana Post’s efforts to provide universal services to the post.
He stated that the partnership will bring additional revenue in the form of commissions among other things.
“It’s an extension of us bringing government services and universal services into the post office” he added.
He added that it is not only about staking but one can also claim and redeem wins from the post.
