Pretoria - The final National Gambling Policy that is applicable to casinos, among others, has been approved by Cabinet, Minister in the Presidency for Performance Monitoring and Evaluation Jeff Radebe said.
Briefing reporters on Thursday following Cabinet’s meeting, Minister Radebe said the policy addresses challenges hampering the effectiveness of the National Gambling Act, 2004 (Act 7 of 2004).
“The policy proposes amendments to the regulatory structural framework of the gambling boards and strengthens the control mechanisms to minimise the abuse of gambling,” said the Minister.
The policy is applicable to casinos, bingo, limited payout machines and betting on horseracing.
It will replace the National Gambling Board with a National Gambling Regulator that will directly report to the Department of Trade and Industry.
Renewable Energy Development Zones (REDZ)
Cabinet also approved the gazetting of Renewable Energy Development Zones (REDZ).
The REDZ will streamline the regulatory process, identify geographical areas where wind and solar photovoltaic technologies can be incentivised and where ‘deep’ grid expansion can be directed.
These REDZ’s will ensure a transition to a low carbon economy, accelerate infrastructure development, and contribute to a more coherent and predictable regulatory framework that reduces bureaucracy related to the cost of compliance.
The policy, said Minister Radebe, has already gone through a public consultation process.
Review of Minimum age of criminal capacity
The Cabinet meeting also approved the submission of the Report on the Review of the Minimum Age of Criminal Capacity to Parliament, which is required in terms of the Child Justice Act, 2008 (Act 75 of 2008).
The report recommends that the country adopts the international and regional obligations regarding the minimum age of criminal capacity of children who are in conflict with the law.
OECD report
Minister Radebe added that Cabinet approved South Africa’s Final Phase 3 Country Report on the Implementation of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) (Anti-Bribery Convention).
The report is to be submitted to the OECD Working Group on Bribery.
The report outlines the progress made by government in its interventions to curb foreign bribery by detecting, investigating and prosecuting it.
In addition, Cabinet was briefed on the findings of the 2014 South African Science, Technology and Innovation Indicators Report of the National Advisory Council on Innovation.
The report provides the trends in the performance of the National System of Innovation (NSI).
It assesses the performance and contribution of the NSI to key national priorities articulated in the National Development Plan. –SAnews.gov.za
