Gambling regulators from South Africa, Nigeria, Mauritius, Uganda and Rwanda will begin drafting a cross-border cooperation framework in Rome on 5 November.
The Gaming Regulators Africa Forum (GRAF) is running the workshop with SiGMA at Fiera Roma, during SiGMA World Rome. The session produces a first text, titled the Rome Working Draft, Version 0.1.
It continues work started at the GRAF Regulatory Forum during SiGMA Africa 2026 in Cape Town in March.
What the framework is meant to do
The target is practical cooperation rather than common law. Delegates will work on information sharing, joint investigations and enforcement against cross-border and illegal operators.
Each jurisdiction keeps its own legislative autonomy. In Cape Town, participants accepted that fully coordinated licensing across the continent is unrealistic in the short term. Shared principles, faster information exchange and joint enforcement were judged achievable instead.
Five working groups
The afternoon splits delegates into five facilitated groups, each covering one area:
- Information-sharing protocols
- Legal and institutional arrangements
- Operational enforcement cooperation
- Capacity building and knowledge exchange
- Communication and stakeholder engagement
Each group tests how its recommendations would work in practice, then reports back in plenary. GRAF will consolidate the results into the framework.
Who is in the room
Programme director Bonga Mngoma, Executive for Transformation and Economic Development at South Africa's KwaZulu-Natal Economic Regulatory Authority, opens the session with GRAF president Mabutho Zwane.
Zoé Siwa, Chief Financial Officer of the Western Cape Gambling and Racing Board, moderates the panel on cross-border gambling and illegal markets. Both officials facilitate the working groups. The African iGaming Alliance and iGaming Academy are also represented, with a keynote from Jaime Debono of iGaming Academy.
Why it matters for operators
Operators licensed in several African markets currently answer to regulators that rarely share case files.
A working information channel changes how fast one regulator's finding reaches another. Enforcement is already active market by market: Uganda has blocked illegal sites and destroyed seized machines, and South Africa's North West board is pushing for technology-led rules. A shared framework would join those efforts up.
The workshop sits inside the wider programme at SiGMA World Rome, which runs from 2 to 5 November.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Gaming Regulators Africa Forum?
GRAF is the body that promotes collaboration between gambling regulatory authorities across Africa. It is convening and consolidating this framework.
What is the Rome Working Draft?
The first version, 0.1, of a written cooperation framework for African gambling regulators. Drafting begins at the 5 November workshop.
Will African gambling laws be harmonised?
No. The framework is designed to improve cooperation while each country keeps its own gambling legislation.
Which countries are taking part?
Senior representatives from national and provincial regulators in South Africa, Nigeria, Mauritius, Uganda and Rwanda.
What will the framework cover?
Information-sharing protocols, legal and institutional arrangements, operational enforcement cooperation, capacity building, and stakeholder communication.
