On assuming the presidency of Coljuegos, the business administrator from Barranquilla, César Augusto Valencia, is committed to strengthening the contribution that the gambling industry makes to the health sector. The new president was interviewed and assured that one of his challenges is to promote greater collection for exploitation rights of gambling and accompany the operators in the recovery process.
Q: What are the challenges when taking office?
A: We have a great responsibility, in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, to contribute to a sector that is decisive for the country, such as health. The resources that are generated by the exploitation of gambling are used for the health of Colombians. For this reason, one of the great challenges has to do with the generation of conditions that allow the highest collection for exploitation rights of gambling. To contribute to this purpose, one of our objectives is the fight against illegality and the promotion of responsible gambling. We have a great challenge to work with the territorial entities, the unions, the National Police, the Attorney General's Office and the Ministry of ICT to raise awareness among citizens about the importance of legal and responsible gambling in establishments authorized by Coljuegos, as well as in the 16 portals of games operated by internet that have the permission of the regulator.
Q: How will you support the revival?
A: It is necessary to contribute to the economic reactivation of the sector and its sustainability. We are going to accompany national game operators from Coljuegos and through the National Council of gambling to territorial game operators in the recovery process because I am aware that the industry has been very hit as a result of the pandemic.
Q: What has been the impact of the pandemic?
A: Colombians have different entertainment options in the gambling industry: casinos, bingo halls, ballot, others gambling form operated by the internet, the latter two being the competence of the territorial authorities, among others. Although these were affected by the pandemic, in some cases, they have recovered the collection of exploitation rights in the last month, even above the figures for January and February. Casino and bingo operators have implemented biosecurity protocols to guarantee players access in the best conditions. Coljuegos supports the expansion of the offer of gambling based on the authorization of bingo halls with remote presence of the player, the immediate prize incentive for territorial games and the diversification of the portfolio of games operated over the internet. We expect that this year, despite the temporary limitation in the operation of casino and bingo establishments, the collection for exploitation rights will amount to $ 342,000 million, a figure that represents 43% of the exploitation rights in 2019.
Q: How has the behavior of online gambling been?
A: This year, the gambling started with good behavior; however, given the measures adopted during the health emergency, they were affected in the collection of exploitation rights. The games operated by the internet that were impacted by the suspension of sports competitions, today report exploitation rights for $ 65,000 million COP and are expected to close the year with $ 83,404 million COP, a figure higher than that registered at the end of 2019, which was $ 68,480 million COP. It should be noted that the player's user accounts have grown by 35% from 2019 to 2020, going from 4 million accounts to 5.2 million.
