“The journey so far”, the great book cataloguing memories of NLA launched




In a bid to preserve its legacy coupled with the memorable milestones chalked right from its inception to date and recording  it for posterity, the National Lottery Authority (NLA) has launched a book titled “the journey so far”.

“The journey so far” is a 200 pages book cataloguing the history, achievements and challenges of the National Lottery Authority since the beginning of its operation in 1958 to date.

According to NLA’s Director-General, Brigadier Gen. Martin K. G. Ahiaglo(Rtd), The best way to preserve the authority’s rich heritage was to look into the past and spring together the unforgettable milestones in its history right from inception to date and documenting it for posterity.

He explained that was the idea that gave birth to the title of the book: “the journey so far”.

Delivering a speech at the launch on Tuesday February 1, 2017, Brigadier Gen. Martin K. G. Ahiaglo (Rtd) maintained the title of the book the journey so far is the reflection of how far NLA has come since the first raffle was drawn in 1958.   

He noted the idea of recording the history of the authority also brought to the fore the need for a critical review or assessment of the activities of the authority to redefine “our mission, vision and organs for smooth strategic direction and to bolster necessary better delivery on our mandate”.

He said: “Through this review, we are able to take a peep into critical issues like the real purpose of NLA, why NLA exists?, what we do on which we drive all mission, where we are now and what we intends to be like in the lottery industry in Africa to shape our vision and also look at our character which is exhibited thorough our attitude, behaviour and conduct to define our core values”.

In his speech, former Director General of NLA, Major Gen. C.B Yaache (Rtd) recounted the daunting challenges the NLA went through in the past to get to its current state where patrons are now at ease to play their favorite lottery games on point of sale devices on smart phones instead of the use of olden methods where printed machines are used to generate tickets.

“We have had to face a lot of challenges in the past using printed machines to generate our tickets. At a point in time the obsolete machines we used frequently broke down. There was also the problem of spare parts, we sometimes have to mold cards for the machine like ‘kokonte’ because the cards were simply not in the market” he narrated.  

The former director general indicated the authority has come a long way witnessing its massive transformation from manual lottery to automated lottery operations in recent time therefore “the story need to be told”. 

He commended past directors, board of directors, the dedicated staff and all those who contributed immensely to the success of the authority in diverse ways.

Since its inception in 1958, the NLA has distinguished as one of the best organized lottery institutions in the world. For nearly 60 years, it has also become one of the biggest contributors to the Consolidated Fund; in addition to providing relief to various groups of the needy. But for the average Ghanaian, it is the national reference point to making a fortune.

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