Botswana: GH Races Against Time for Casino
Mmegi/The Reporter (Gaborone)
July 27, 2006
Posted to the web July 28, 2006
Monkagedi Gaotlhobogwe
Gaborone Hotel (GH) is racing against time to get its casino running by August to avoid its permit being revoked.
The hotel, which is situated at the bus rank, was issued with a permit in June last year and the owner of the hotel Bipin Awasthi admits he is running out of time. Awasthi is hopeful that within a matter of weeks the first phase of the casino will be up and running.
Although he has not operated a casino business before Awasthi remains confident that the project that has been stalling for the last 13 months, can be completed in one month. Currently, there is nothing going on at the hotel to suggest that construction of the project is in progress, but Awasthi reveals that he has already found an unnamed technical partner, which is a South African casino installation company.
He says the company will supply him with equipment as well as do the installation. He claims that the local Casino control board has already approved the plan for the casino. Last week Awasthi ran newspaper adverts calling for casino operators.
However, the secretary for the Botswana Casino Control Board John Matsheng said he doubts if at all the casino would be operational by August.
The Gaborone Hotel owner is the first to admit that the process of employing casino workers is so long, because it involves clearing every employee with the police, but he is confident that first phase of the casino will be up and running by August. He says he is aware that he needs to have completed everything by August so that by the time his permit elapses the following month, he has something to show otherwise he will be out of the casino business for good.
The casino will be built in two phases, and he intends to demolish the public bar and garden to install the equipment he estimates will cost P4 million.
Awasthi, who bought GH from the Botswana Development Bank (BDC) a few years back says business at the bus station has been terrible but he hoped the casino could help boost its image. Its public bar attracts people from the low-income group.
"That is because the beer at the public bar is cheaper than at the cocktail bar. The cocktail bar still attracts decent people and that is the class of people we are hoping to keep. We don't bank much on people from the public bar because they do not have much disposable income," Awasthi said. The hotel is not only faced with the challenge of wooing a new class of people but the hassle of accessing it.
"There is a lot of traffic from taxis coming and going out of the station. The area is usually quieter after 9pm. We hope to start doing business around those times, when people can drive in and out with a few hassles," Awasthi explained He believes the casino will be his trump card after many years of losses. He has in the past lost staff to rival companies because there was no money to pay them.
With the casino dream, Awasthi hopes to employ a total of 50 people when fully operational.
He also hopes to win six to seven percent of the clientele from the two existing casinos in Gaborone.[/b] |
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