Do Online Betting Sites In Uganda Have Bright Future?

With markets opening up across the world from Japan to the US there seems no reason that online betting sites in Uganda shouldn’t rise with everyone else’s tide, however there are local issues that remain an obstacle to a fully fledged regulated gambling industry in the country and whilst the authorities attempt to deal with them foreign investors are still wary of this great opportunity on the African continent.

Whilst Robert Mugabe looks to be in trouble with his military in Zimbabwe a couple of thousand kilometers north authorities in Uganda are being urged to arrest Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir for immediate surrender to the International Criminal Court to answer the charges of crimes against humanity leveled against him. The optimism of this demand by human rights campaigners reflects just how much the denizens of Kampala like to gamble and why online betting sites in Uganda are growing in popularity.

Obviously online betting sites in Uganda have a few hurdles to overcome as they seek to exploit this new territory, the most obvious being that barely 16% of the country has regular access to an internet connection, but as with the development of so many nations this number is only ever set to grow over time and as that expansion of the market is inevitable and Ugandan gambling laws permit its provision there are plenty of companies ready and willing to take up the reins to facilitate safe, sensible gaming.

Uganda Is A Developing Gaming Market

Perhaps a little unfortunately online betting sites in Uganda will have to compete on a distinctly less than level playing field as the enforcement of law in this regard is a tad lax in places and whilst there is a legitimate route to licensed service provision there are dozens of illegal, tax dodging, gambling outfits in place. With over a 1000 betting shops in the country, and approximately $42 million estimated to be spent on gambling annually the scant $5 million in revenue earned by the government hints at a need for radical change.

Casino Simba, the largest in the country in the capital Kampala, offers a range of table and video games but caters mostly for a high-end clientele of which the vast majority of the country does not comprise and it will be replacing the plethora of high street bookies, operating on the fringes of the law, that online betting sites in Uganda will have to compete when push comes to shove, and given the numbers who wish to bet on sports in Uganda week-in-week-out that battle is only just getting started.

Online Betting Sites In Uganda Have Tough Competition On The High Street

For overseas investors online betting sites in Uganda is obviously a slow burn slow return gamble, but with other African nations showing the way forward the model is not one that has a fiscal downside over the long term, and with licenses to operate in the country reasonably priced at under $3,500 there is no reason not to dip a toe in what are, if we’re honest, slightly turbulent waters. Uganda has a reputation it is only just beginning to shake off and there’s a long row to hoe in order to get things going.

The socio-economic imbalance, low competitiveness of local industry and business, alongside the ever present issues of corruption mean that whilst for online betting sites in Uganda the only way is up (as Yaz sang so beautifully back in 1988, it will be quite some time before the likes of BetVictor will be earning as much from this developing nation as they do from the Europe or Asia. That said no one in Uganda gambling news of a crackdown on illegal operators will solve the problem quickly has any idea what they’re talking about.