Lotteries have long been a favorite pastime in Vietnam and have made a positive contribution to its economy. Lotto generates millions in annual revenue that supports social projects and infrastructure development while creating employment opportunities for lottery retailers and operators. But lotteries can also carry risks, so players should be wary.
Vietnamese residents now have another form of lottery play available to them besides traditional pre-printed numbers: computer-generated lotteries that provide various prizes can be played from landlines, mobile phones or the internet – such as Vietlott and Mega Lottery which operate nationwide.
The rising popularity of new types of lotteries has created some difficulties for traditional ones, including reduced prize money. To stay competitive and remain profitable, some companies have started altering prize structures in order to remain viable; additionally, more complex new games require greater knowledge but offer increased chances of success than their counterparts.
Though ticket prize amounts haven’t changed significantly over time, lottery sellers have seen their sales decrease due to competition; some even began losing money as a result. Huong, a pregnant single mother from Saigon who sells tickets as her sole source of income, relies on selling lottery tickets – sometimes up to 230 per day on good days – and makes daily profits of US-Dollars from selling tickets.
But lottery dealers have not given up hope despite diminishing profits; instead they have employed various strategies to boost sales such as permitting vendors to return unsold tickets at the end of each day; however, these dealers often prohibit vendors who return more than 10 unpaid tickets, forcing lottery street vendors to try selling as many tickets as possible to prevent losing money.
Covid-19 pandemic may have had an adverse impact on Vietnam’s lottery business, yet the industry continues to thrive. Vietnam’s total lottery revenues surpassed VND63,000 billion during its first quarter 2022; up from VND59,000 billion last year. This growth can largely be attributed to growth of southern region lottery market where over 98% of tickets sold were purchased there.
Lotteries have become an integral part of Vietnamese culture, with people of all ages playing regularly. People come together and hope for big wins while supporting their country through social projects funded through lottery proceeds as well as jobs created from playing. While it can have its darker sides, lotteries also help fund social welfare programs as well as provide elderly and poor support within their hometown communities. It is important that people play responsibly and remember that lottery isn’t meant as a replacement for social welfare programs; therefore authorities should consider measures supporting lottery vendors so as to continue benefitting Vietnamese people from playing lotto games.
