Oddly enough, the UK and Kenya are among the countries where gambling is one of the best entertainment options. But with the great popularity of casinos and bookmakers, responsibility is also growing.
Unfortunately, gambling problems are common among many punters. Countries spend resources developing various programs, tools, and systems to prevent such a disease. Kenya and Britain are no exception, but there is quite a big difference between them in this aspect.
Responsible Gambling Tools in the UK: GamStop
The United Kingdom Gambling Commission (UKGC) has developed its own GamStop self-exclusion program, which is currently the most effective in the world and at the same time free of charge.
Many non GameStop casinos are popular among British players, and responsible players are allowed to play there. However, a lot of players are not able to control themselves, so they should use GamStop self-exclusion. Realizing that gamblers can often not control their actions, UKGC has launched this system in their region and obliges operators to connect to GamStop without exception if they want to provide services to British users.
Numerous experiments and analytics confirm the effectiveness of this self-exclusion system. The growth of gambling problems among players has decreased by almost 1.5x, which is an excellent result for the relatively long period of GamStop's functioning. GamStop users will be denied online gambling access at non-UK casinos or gambling sites registered in Scotland, the UK, and England.
Although the program allows you to limit the time spent on casino sites, the number of deposits, or the category of games, it has one drawback. Unfortunately, GamStop is only available to gamblers from Britain and Ireland and is not available in other regions.
Responsible Gambling Tools in Kenya
The main body that controls the gambling business in Kenya is Betting Control and Licensing Board (BCLB). Of the available self-exclusion methods, only local tools and programs are available to all gamblers.
Such variations of self-exclusion are not as effective as GamStop in the UK, but as mentioned above, gamblers from Kenya do not have access to it. One effective option is to use an internal request from the establishment and provide the relevant data to activate the restrictions. But it depends more on the players' will, and forcing them to do this is impossible.
Also, do not forget that, although temporarily, online casinos and bookmakers are illegal in Kenya. This is a rather big problem because to provide gamblers with the tools to self-exclude, there must come a stage when online platforms are available to them legally. While they can play on online platforms outside of Kenya, this makes them vulnerable to fraudulent schemes.
Does Kenya Need Tools like GamStop?
Kenya definitely needs tools like GamStop. Uncontrolled gambling, which entails addiction, is a very serious problem for both site operators and players in Kenya. This can be avoided by providing all possible systems and access to the self-exclusion program. A good alternative to GamStop can be Gamban, Gamcare or BetBlocker. But these 3 programs require a subscription fee, while GamStop is completely free. For some gamblers, this will be the main disadvantage.
A set of rules for responsible gaming and programs like GamStop have been developed to save casino customers from unpleasant consequences. Clients of establishments and owners of offline clubs and sites with gambling entertainment must follow these recommendations.
Kenya can build on the UK's practical and legal processes to enforce the mandatory systems and mechanisms that every licensed casino must have. It is obvious that these two countries at this stage are at a completely different level in terms of gambling control: the UK is a benchmark, and Kenya is only at the start of developing additional mechanisms.
Conclusion
By its example, the UK showed how the system and self-exclusion programs could work if resources and priorities are properly managed. As a result, this country receives a huge economic benefit from taxes from casinos that seek to access the UK gambling market.
Kenya, as mentioned earlier, is only at the starting point, and in addition to self-exclusion tools and responsible gambling, more challenging tasks must be solved. Licensed online casinos have many tools that allow gamblers to control bets and games and, if necessary, restrict access to the account at the request of its owner or close relatives of the player. But everything needs time.
