Underage gambling on the rise as KwaDukuza school campaign launches
The South African Responsible Gambling Foundation saysalthough illegal, the harsh reality is that underage gambling is increasingly seen by children to support their families.
The National Responsible Gambling Programme is rolling out a campaign at schools in KwaDukuza to educate pupils and teachers about the risks and dangers of underage gambling.
The ‘Taking Risks Wisely’ campaign kicks off on Tuesday.
The programme's Lebogang Seoheng says research shows that many children are first exposed through card and dice games played by people in their community, which normalises the behaviour.
"The programme is twofold. It's aimed at creating awareness, but it's also aimed at prevention more than anything else and equipping these learners with the knowledge that they should not be engaging in risky behaviour," says Seoheng.
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"Another arm of the programme is the educator programme, where we train teachers with regard to understanding what gambling is about. And provide them with material for them to use within the classroom as part of life orientation. This training course is provided for free, and it is accredited by the South African Council for Educators."
He says this has been an ongoing initiative.
" In 2024, we visited 72 schools across all provinces, which impacted 75,360 learners and over 2,400 teachers. In 2025, we implemented the programme in all nine provinces, reaching 120 schools, over 109,000 learners, and over 3,400 teachers. In 2026, we are aiming to grow that number."
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