About this app
About Sweet Fiesta
The Malta Gaming Authority (MGA), working alongside the Malta Digital Innovation Authority (MDIA), drafted the voluntary charter following extensive surveys and interviews with industry licensees.
That study found that AI adoption across the gambling industry remained uneven. It highlighted customer support, data analytics, fraud detection, and responsible gaming as areas where the technology was already being heavily used.
However, it also found that formal governance of AI was struggling to keep pace with its growing usage. Only a minority of organizations surveyed reported having a formal AI strategy or roadmap. Many said one remained in development.
About Sweet Fiesta
Van Bruggen revealed the cabinet was in the process of developing legislation to introduce DNS blocking for illegal sites, with a consultation due for early 2027.
Members flagged the growing issue of illegal gambling sites’ advertising appearing across social media, an issue the sector in Netherlands has sought to tackle directly through legal action against Meta.
Speaking on behalf of the government, Van Bruggen said: “Meta, especially as one of the parties, but also Google, is really open to this conversation.”
What is Sweet Fiesta?
He believes the success of Africa Safer Gambling Week will largely be assessed on whether that channelisation improves by the next edition.
He warns governments and policymakers often misunderstand the primary causes of problem gambling, and therefore enforce measures that squeeze licensed operators and drive the illegal market.
For the AiA, however, the longer-term ambition for Africa Safer Gambling Week extends beyond reducing the size of the offshore market.
