Kenya ranked among Africa’s top three betting markets, with 70% of gamblers aged 26–35. Alarmingly, more than half were low-income earners driven by mobile loans, placing the average annual spend at KSh 132,000. While the government made efforts to rein in this addiction including advertising bans and tighter regulations—the game has merely shifted online.
With the 2020 ban on TV and radio betting ads, 68% of advertising budgets flowed to influencers. These digital promoters are now the betting industry’s frontline, luring youth through TikTok challenges, coded hashtags, and dramatized “big win” narratives. The Betting Control and Licensing Board (BCLB) attempted a crackdown in 2024 by halting betting promotions and later banning influencer marketing. The backlash was immediate: influencers decried it as an assault on their livelihood.
The challenge lies in regulating a borderless, faceless digital army. Over 15,000 influencers operate across platforms, many outside Kenya. They hide behind fake accounts, use burner phones, and communicate in Sheng or vernacular languages to dodge detection. Ads are camouflaged as personal stories, “tutorials,” or memes, bypassing disclosure laws. A mere 12% of such posts use the required #ad tag.
With no central registry, limited funding (KSh 240M), and no AI tools to monitor over half a million daily posts, the BCLB is grossly outmatched. Social media platforms, driven by ad revenue, often ignore takedown requests without court orders. Even traditional media’s compliance underscores the contrast: they are licensed entities, accountable under Kenyan law. Influencers are not.
The truth is harsh: regulation is outdated, tech is moving too fast, and public resistance is high. Until Kenya updates its legal framework and invests in AI-based monitoring, betting influencers will remain a step ahead. This is not just a regulatory failure it’s a national vulnerability targeting our youth.
Unless we act decisively and innovate boldly, Kenya’s war against betting addiction will remain, tragically, an unwinnable game.
