Paraguay took a significant step in building a more solid regulatory framework for gambling. The Paraguayan Association of Gambling Operators (APOJA) met with the National Gambling Commission (CONAJZAR) at the headquarters of this body, in a meeting that was also joined by representatives of the Ministry of Public Health and Social Welfare, through the Mental Health and Addictions Development Network, as well as unions and operators from the land-based and online sector.
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The focus of the day was the coordination between the public and private sectors for the design and implementation of problem gambling prevention policies. The concrete result of the meeting was a shared roadmap that includes innovative instruments for the country in this matter.
What is the National Responsible Gambling Pact and why it matters
One of the most relevant agreements of the meeting was the commitment to move forward with the signing of a National Responsible Gambling Pact. This type of instrument, which already exists in other regulated markets in the region, formalizes voluntary commitments from the private sector regarding prevention, responsible advertising, and protection of vulnerable players, with institutional monitoring by the regulatory body.
For Paraguay, the signing of this pact would represent a qualitative leap in the governance of the sector: moving from a regulation based exclusively on rules and sanctions to a model of co-responsibility, in which operators assume active and verifiable commitments beyond what the law requires.
Lorena Rojas, president of APOJA, summarized the spirit of the meeting by noting that the sector reaffirms its commitment to strengthening responsible and sustainable policies. The statement is relevant because it positions the industry as an active part of the solution, and not just as an object of regulation.
The permanent public-private table: an unprecedented structure in the country
The second major agreement was the formation of a permanent public-private coordination table. Unlike one-off meetings, this type of institutional space allows for continuous dialogue between the State, the business sector, and health organizations, which facilitates the early detection of problems, the adaptation of policies, and the exchange of information on consumption patterns.
The inclusion of the Ministry of Public Health and Social Welfare in this structure is an indicator that the approach adopted is not exclusively regulatory or tax-collecting, but incorporates the health dimension of problem gambling as a central component of public policy.
The SUMAR Plan: what it proposes and what role it plays in the strategy
During the day, the SUMAR Plan was also presented, although the details of its specific content were not exhaustively disclosed in the official communication. According to the context in which it was presented, the plan is part of the package of tools agreed upon for the prevention of problem gambling and complements both the National Pact and the coordination table.
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Its name suggests a logic of integration of actors and resources, coherent with the collaborative approach that dominated the meeting. It is expected that more precise details about its scope will be communicated as the implementation of the agreements progresses.
Record collection: the sector grew by 22,85 percent in 2025
In parallel with the prevention agenda, CONAJZAR also released data on the economic performance of the sector that reinforce the strategic relevance of gambling for Paraguay’s public finances.
The balance between economic growth and social protection
The coincidence between the record collection and the push for responsible gambling policies is not accidental: it reflects a trend observed in more mature markets, where the growth of the sector generates pressure to strengthen control and prevention mechanisms.
A sector that collects more also attracts more players and, with them, a greater proportion of people in vulnerable situations. The logic of the National Pact and the public-private table aims precisely to ensure that the economic growth of gambling does not translate into an equivalent increase in social harm.
Paraguay thus joins a regional trend that seeks to reconcile the regulation of gambling as a source of legitimate revenue with the responsibility of the State and operators regarding the effects of problem gambling on public health.
How much the guaraníes represent in dollars
To facilitate the understanding of the figures in an international context, the 2025 collection of 215.940 million guaraníes is equivalent, at the average exchange rate of the year, to approximately 29 million dollars. The collection for January 2026, of 18.715 million guaraníes, represents around 2,5 million dollars. These figures place the Paraguayan market as an emerging market with an accelerated pace of expansion within the region.
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