Buenos Aires Lottery (LOTBA) finished its 2025 ACAP program last week. The initiative pulled in students from local secondary schools to learn about professional environments and university pathways.
LOTBA’s Change Management team ran the program. They worked with the lottery’s Modernisation and Administrative departments to adjust sessions based on what each participating school needed.
This year’s version included something different. Current lottery interns, university students themselves, joined the sessions. They answered questions and shared what transitioning from high school to work actually looked like.
Why LOTBA Focuses on Youth Engagement
The lottery operates in a tricky space. Gaming companies face criticism for youth exposure to gambling content, especially online.
LOTBA President Jesús Acevedo addressed this directly at LAPSYCONF in Buenos Aires during World Mental Health Day. He spoke on a panel about protecting kids as digital gambling spreads.
The ACAP program tackles this by getting ahead of the problem. Rather than just blocking access, LOTBA connects with students before they’re making decisions about gambling. Sessions emphasised the “Hablar es Ganar” (To Speak is to Win) campaign throughout.
What the Program Actually Delivered
Students attended workplace introduction activities over several weeks. Sessions varied depending on school needs, but all covered career planning and higher education options.
The internship participants proved valuable. These weren’t executives giving corporate speeches – they were students just a few years older sharing real experiences. That made the conversations more useful.
At the closing ceremony, Acevedo appeared with Directors Maximiliano Letto and Ezequiel Dominguez. They recognised participating students and pushed them to continue training after graduation.
LOTBA’s broader youth protection work includes technical measures too. They’ve blocked illegal gambling sites from public school networks and BA WIFI. The lottery files criminal complaints against unlicensed operators and requires responsible gaming tools on legal platforms.
Acevedo highlighted the difference between legal sites ending in .bet.ar and illegal operations. Legal platforms require identity verification and regulatory approval. Illegal sites don’t.
How This Fits LOTBA’s Regulatory Position
The program serves dual purposes. It helps students learn about professional environments while positioning LOTBA as a responsible operator.
That matters in Argentina’s gaming market. Regulators watch how licensed operators handle youth exposure issues. Programs like ACAP demonstrate active prevention rather than passive compliance.
By using interns as mentors, LOTBA created peer-to-peer messaging. Students heard from people who recently faced similar decisions about education and careers. The responsible gaming messages came alongside practical advice, not as separate lectures.
The approach blends education initiatives with harm prevention. LOTBA isn’t just telling students not to gamble – they’re connecting with them on career development while reinforcing digital citizenship concepts.
