63 PUBLIC GAMING INTERNATIONAL • SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2022 the state of the lottery and sports betting sector worldwide. It is a big and ongoing project carried out by the talented and dedicated team at the WLA headquarters in Switzerland. Now in its ninth year, the GLDC includes a number of key performance indicators, such as sales revenues and funds returned to good causes. All the information is sourced directly from our Regular and Associate Members, and the indicators are carefully selected to ensure compliance with competition laws. We know this resource is appreciated by everyone because the influx of inquiries starts to build up when we are finishing the next edition. The GLDC wouldn’t exist without the input of all our members, and we appreciate everyone’s participation. In fact, the 2021 edition of the GLDC received data from 88% of members despite the difficulties of the global pandemic. The 2022 edition will be made available to delegates of the World Lottery Summit 2022 (WLS 2022) in electronic format. Hard copies will be distributed to WLA Lottery Members and WLA Associate Members immediately following the summit. The GLDC also has contact and other information about the lotteries, right? R. Paul: As part of the continued path of digitalization of our products and services, we have been busy over the past two years developing the e-Compendium member directory as an extension to the WLA website. Importantly, the website offers ways to access and use member profiles that were unavailable in the paper format. This electronic version includes additional new features such as: • A built-in exchange rate (World Bank) that allows instant conversion of annual sales figures into different currencies. • An option to select multiple years so users can compare annual figures. • A f ilter that allows users to f ind information for all lotteries by region or by country. It has been almost four years since we were all together at the World Lottery Summit in Buenos Aires. It seems like the WLA has taken advantage of this time to enhance its communications strategies and methods to stay connected with its membership. R. Paul: Improving the lines of communication and outreach has always been an important WLA objective. The last couple years, though, have prompted us to think about how we might further enhance these services to keep our global community of members and partners informed on the latest news and other relevant topics. We have initiated and continue a variety of strategies to meet this goal, including: • A weekly, informative newsletter prepared by our colleagues in Lausanne. • Regular updates on our website that feature corporate and member news. • Increased blog content. • Our WLA magazine, which is published three times a year and focuses on pertinent themes. We are also ramping up our presence on social media and creating more video content on our YouTube channel. We believe that our members can learn much from each other, and we strongly encourage you to share your news with us by visiting the About Us section of our website. And f inally, we continue to digitalize our services to bring you these products in a more accessible, easy-touse manner. I would like to close by thanking everyone for supporting the WLA. I hope you enjoy or (as the case may be depending on when you read this) enjoyed the WLS in Vancouver, Canada! n 16. Rebecca joins Desiree Rogers and Sharon Sharp in 1991 for a reunion of former Illinois Lottery directors known as “Three of Hearts.” 17.“Miss Indiana” (pictured on far right) shines at the Miss America pageant in 1973, where she earned the honor of 4th runner-up. 16 17
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