Vietnam develops lottery business
24/12/2004 15:01
Vietnam will allow its northern and central regions to issue lotteries
at regional scale, instead of local scale as they do currently, in a move to
increase state budget collections.
Under a recent decision issued by the
Ministry of Finance, from January 2005, lottery companies in the northern and
central regions will be permitted to issue lotteries in their regions, instead
of their city or province, according to local media reports on Friday.
In
2004, the local lottery business is estimated to contribute 4,065 billion
Vietnamese dong (VND) (US$258.9 million) to the state budget, of which only 9
percent came from lottery companies in 43 northern and central localities and 91
percent from those in 21 southern localities.
Lottery companies in the
southern region, which are already allowed to sell tickets regionwide, have
developed a market- oriented agent network, while their counterparts in northern
and central regions sell tickets mainly via retail outlets.
In 2003, the
local lottery industry recorded turnovers of 3,550 billion VND (US$226.1
million), or 2.6 percent of the state budget. The industry's annual growth was
some 17 percent during the last five years.
"The lottery business is
significant in terms of tax revenue as it is a state financial tool to regulate
and redistribute national income," said a ministry official.
Xinhua
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