Sthembiso Sithole from the office of the Presidency attended a media briefing held by the National Cannabis Dialogue’s organizing committee on 20 August 2026 in Kempton Park, and confirmed attendance at next week’s summit.
The event, billed as the National Consensus on SMME, Informal Economy, Cannabis and Hemp Sectoral Dialogue, is being held under the auspices of the broader National Dialogue, and is to take place at the Kempton Park Banquet Hall, Gauteng on Thursday 27 August 2026.
About 300 representatives from the cannabis industry are expected to attend the one day event and will be heartened to hear that Cyril Ramaphosa’s office is taking the gathering seriously.
NCD media spokesperson, Thabo Makwela said there was an urgent need for transparency around the legacy Phakisa Cannabis and Hemp Report (the outcome of the Phakisa Action Lab , organized by the Presidency in June 2023.
He called for the “operationalisation of the National Cannabis Master Plan” and for “structured commercial laws to support the broader R68-billion economy”.
In a statement released after the meeting, steering committee said: “The briefing highlighted the unified front presented by traditional practitioners, growers, informal traders, cooperatives, and commercial advocates preparing to meet executive state leadership—including representatives from the Presidency, SAHPRA, the NPA, and top SAPS management”.
The statement said the core objectives of the National Cannabis Dialogue were to finalize the Amnesty & Safe Passage Protocol, sign the National Cannabis and Hemp Redress Declaration, and establish operational frameworks for inclusive economic participation in the cannabis industry going forward..
In short, the desired outcomes from the summit can be summarized thus:
· Clear up the uncertainties in the industry;
· Consolidate achievements, including the Phakisa ‘sandbox’
· A clear programme going forward
Makwela said citizens had the right to act in the face of government inaction, provided this did not resort to vigilantism and that the NCD conformed to the principle of “government of the people, for the people, by the people”.
He said feedback was still required from Justice Department on the Cannabis for Private Purposes Act regulations. The proposed plant limits of five per adult, were not realistic, he said, adding that the NCD would also give “indigenous knowledge communities” a chance to argue how the law should recognize cannabis’s role in legacy societies.
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