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| Sunday, 2 February 2003 |
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Privatising Lotteries Board to enhance profits - Chairman by ELMO LEONARD The National Lotteries Board (NLB) has contributed Rs. 1.6 billion for state development projects in 2002, NLB chairman, Imtiaz Ismail, revealed to the media. A sum of Rs. 1.2 billion was allocated for the development of hospitals and health services, and the balance funds went for improving aspects of women's affairs, farmers and the armed forces. NLB's turnover for 2002 amounted to Rs. 4.8 billion, 30 percent more than that of year 2001. Profits for 2002, made up Rs. 450 million. NLB's projected turnover for year 2003 is Rs. 6.2 billion, Ismail said. The government plans to privatise the National Lotteries Board and earn a bigger revenue from the sale of its assets. With privatisation, the government would initially be paid an upfront fee of Rs. 3 billion per year, plus 26 percent of turnover or a sum of $15 million. Foreign players are also interested in entering the privatisation process. Answering questions, chairman Ismail said that privatisation of NLB would not entail "selling the family silver." Privatisation would result in a much higher amount of profit into government coffers, which could be utilised for national development. The managers of the privatised venture would introduce modern technology, which would greatly enhance the profitability and efficiency of the lottery system, and more lotteries could be introduced. Moreover, it was the philosophy of Premier Ranil Wickremesinghe that government should desist from conducting business and concentrate its efforts of governance, Ismail explained. NLB recently held its 13th Airport Super Draw, where lottery tickets are sold at the nation's airport. It would be a good idea to commence an international lottery, Ismail said. NLB would soon bar children under 16 years of age from selling its lottery tickets, NLB executive director, Mohan Wijesinghe, said. Simultaneously, NLB would introduce a self-regulatory system, where the public would be educated on spending only the money they could spare on purchasing lottery tickets. A media campaign on this issue would begin soon. |
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