On Wednesday 3 July, The National Lottery Operator hosted a media event in the spirit of transparency and educating the public about its operations of the South African National Lottery.
The event was officially declared open by Charmaine Mabuza, CEO of ITHUBA, who started off by sharing the warm heritage of the organisation. In her opening remarks, Mabuza spoke about the importance of Corporate South Africa in implementing Corporate Social Investment initiatives that support the development of communities and addressing socio-economic challenges faced by citizens.
Charmaine Mabuza, CEO of ITHUBA.
Pic: Supplied
“Such initiatives gives us, as ITHUBA, the opportunity to embody one of our core values, which is ‘Ubuntu’”, she said.
Some of ITHUBA’s CSI initiatives which have implemented in collaboration with their mother company, Zamani Holdings, include:
The Eric and Charmaine Mabuza Scholarship Foundation which supports hundreds of deserving young learners in their pursuit of studying further through offering them full scholarships.
A youth employment initiative which placed 11 young graduates in various departments within the company on a 12-month internship programme, giving them sought after work experience and skills.
A women empowerment programme that identified 65 female Lottery retailers to develop, train and upskill themselves in order to improve their business skills and grow their businesses.
A national media campaign aimed at raising awareness on femicide and instilling a sense of responsibility around the prevention of violence against women.
A youth enterprise development programme that is aimed at imparting business acumen to budding entrepreneurs, as well as providing them with infrastructure and overall support they need in order to build formalised and profit making businesses.
During the event, ITHUBA also addressed some of the public’s burning questions including the security of their Lottery draws, which was followed by all guests witnessing the live LOTTO draw in ITHUBA’s highly secured Data Centre.
“All Lottery games revolve around stringent draw procedures, which are audited by independent auditors, Mazars. It is therefore important to us that the public understands how the draws are conducted”, said Mabuza.
Speaking about the Lottery systems that ITHUBA uses, Mabuza explained: “The Random Number Generator solution used by ITHUBA has been independently tested and certified by Gaming Laboratories International, the largest company dedicated to providing the gaming and lottery industry with independent testing and evaluation of all types of technology.
Additionally, each draw is also observed by external Auditors, ensuring that the numbers produced by the Random Number Generator (RNG) system are accurately reflected in the lottery system”
ITHUBA proceeded to showcase what sets them apart as the third Operator of the National Lottery:
Game innovation:
ITHUBA has more than doubled the number of initial games and they say this is because they listen to players and the take the time to understand their needs and demands. One of their latest game additions, DAILY LOTTO has exceeded all expectations with its high performance.
Since its launch, more than R123, 924,198.10 has been paid out to over 10,726,326 winners.
Sales Performance:
ITHUBA demonstrated how they have exceeded previous operators’ year on year sales performances by over 56%, breaking their own previous financial year sales record by 16.7%.
In the previous financial year, ITHUBA also exceeded their contribution target to the National Lotteries Distribution Trust Fund (NLDTF) by 9.3%, contributing R1.6 Billion towards the distribution to good causes.
Supporting business development of retail partners:
“We understand that selling lottery products, presents our retail partners with increased revenue streams, not just from the commissions they earn but through increased store traffic. We take the time to help develop their business skills and acumen through partnerships with formal institutions such as Regenesys and UJ Business schools, all done through our CSI initiates”, said Mabuza.
Raising the South African Lottery to global standards:
ITHUBA, as member of the World Lottery Association (WLA) adopts global standard practice. This is why for ITHUBA, moving the draw show into a
digital realm was a natural progression.
Commenting on the content of the event, Economist and Global Speaker, Ndumiso Hadebe who was in attendance said: “In the current business, economic and investment climate in South Africa, more reputable businesses of the stature of Zamani Holdings are required to play a more meaningful role in reigniting a new economic trajectory.
The impact of their work is evidenced through the targets that they have surpassed and have built a world class National Lottery operator and multi-disciplinary firm that is from proudly South African soil.”