The National Lottery Regulatory Commission (NLRC) has announced the introduction of a National Premium Identity Verification Platform (NPIVP) to provide lottery managers’ identities in Nigeria’s lotto sectors.
Mr Lanre Gbajabiamila, Director General of the NLRC, announced this in a communiqué on Tuesday.
According to him, the decision was made following a partner interaction conference on ‘Know Your Customer (KYC) and Verification Issues in the Nigerian Gaming Industry’ at the NLRC Headquarters in Abuja.
Gbajabiamila stated that the measure was started by lottery players as a move aimed at reducing and stopping unethical activities in Nigeria’s lotto business.
“The new NPIVP will provide identification in less than 8 seconds, attach real-time human faces to players, reduce fraud, simplify compliance, and encourage greater industry participation.”
During the discussion, the NLRC D-G expressed the Federal Government’s worry about common concerns in the sector regarding client identification and proof.
According to him, the move is in accordance with the commission’s goal of providing a safe and secure atmosphere for owners and participants.
“Our mission at the NLRC is to create an enabling, safe, and secure environment for operators and players while ensuring the growth of the Nigerian gaming industry.”
“As we all know, the NLRC is Nigeria’s apex gaming regulatory institution, tasked with regulating the operation and business of the national lottery by establishing standards, guidelines, and rules.”
“This is to ensure transparency and integrity, as well as to protect the interests of players, stakeholders, and the public, while also conducting industry-wide assessments regularly.”
“Other duties as may be directed by the President as specified by the National Lottery Act 2005 (as amended),” he said.
Gbajabiamila also used the means to recite the Riot Act to operators and instructed gaming operators to identify and validate players and users of their various gaming platforms to guarantee the security of the gathered and compiled personal data.
“To that end, the commission has worked with other federal government agencies, among others, to promote the gaming industry and ensure a safe and secure gaming environment,” he said.
Clement Omife, Deputy Director, of the Consumer Affairs Bureau, and a representative of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), said the agency had done a lot about KYC, particularly in collaboration with the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), which was a critical aspect of its mandate.
“We are grateful to the NLRC for this wonderful initiative.” We’ve been doing this KYC for a while now, and I can assure you that it will help reduce a lot of crime in the lotto business.
The meeting was attended by Mr Babatunde Bamgboye, representative of the Nigeria Data Protection Bureau (NDPB), the Association of Nigerian Bookmakers (Lottery Operators), led by their Executive Secretary, Akingba Olabimpe, the CBN representative, and others, according to the News Agency of Nigeria.
