Gabon, a Central African country with a population of around 2.65 million, is facing scrutiny over its state-owned gaming company's lack of transparency and detailed regulations surrounding its gambling monopoly. The gaming authority, known as GDJ, has not yet disclosed which private businesses are authorized to operate under the new state-controlled gaming framework that came into effect after all prior licenses and permissions expired on April 7, 2026.
In a call for expressions of interest issued in February, the GDJ set a deadline of March 2, promising a selection process that would be transparent and fair. However, seven months later, results have yet to be announced, leaving the status of potential operators—and the terms under which they might operate—unclear.
The new legal framework for gambling in Gabon was established through Ordinance 0012/PR/2020, which brought online betting into the fold of the country's gambling regulations. After several amendments, the law was ratified in February 2021, and a decree followed in May 2022, limiting the number of online operators to five over three years. The Council of Ministers endorsed these changes on December 29, 2025.
The reform replaced the previous national gaming commission with the GDJ, a state-owned entity tasked with overseeing and organizing gambling activities while also supervising private operators. During parliamentary discussions in 2026, lawmakers raised concerns about potential conflicts of interest arising from having both supervisory and commercial roles within the same organization. In light of these concerns, then-interior minister Adrien Nguema Mba maintained that measures would be implemented to ensure a clear distinction between oversight and operations.
Mba highlighted plans for expanding gambling points of sale throughout Gabon’s nine provinces, emphasizing the importance of tracking financial flows that had previously been outside government purview. The GDJ's board convened for the first time on August 7 to approve its strategic plan and internal regulations, yet specific details on how it would delineate its commercial interests from its supervisory functions remain vague.
In May 2025, it was reported that the task of centralizing financial flows related to gambling had been awarded to eTech SAS without a competitive bidding process, drawing criticism for excluding local tech firms. Former interior minister Hermann Immongault justified this decision, asserting that it was a legal and transparent move in the context of a public-private partnership, noting that eTech would eventually be fully owned by the state. He captured the state’s rationale by discussing the need to move away from a model that relied heavily on operators declaring their earnings and paying an 8% tax, labeling it outdated.
By June 2026, another report stated that Paymetrust had entered into an agreement with the GDJ to manage online betting payments through a platform integrated with banking and mobile-money services, though the relationship between this new arrangement and eTech’s existing role remained unexplained.
Operators have reported that they are still waiting for formal licenses and operational agreements, voicing concerns about the necessity of separate licenses for various activities, increased operational costs, and challenges with winning payouts and account reconciliations. It has been suggested that operators could face deductions amounting to 30% of their turnover.
The draft 2026 Finance Law projected a revenue of CFA1.24 billion ($2.1 million) from gaming taxes, though it did not clarify the specific fees or terms imposed on operators. While the reform aims to enhance state oversight, financial transparency, and public revenue, the effectiveness of these measures is uncertain until the GDJ reveals the results of its application process and finalizes the operating terms for private companies involved in gambling activities.
