Although Lesotho legalized cannabis exports in 2018, Africa has been a slow starter in joining the ranks of those countries pushing for reform and regulated markets. Although fewer than a quarter of the continent’s countries have partially legalized cannabis, primarily medical cannabis for export and industrial hemp, Africa has the potential to be a future powerhouse on the international cannabis stage. Stay in the loop with all the news, policy, legislative, regulatory and market developments with Cannabiz Africa, your reliable content guide to the African cannabis environment.
Zimbabwe has slashed registration and licensing fees for industrial hemp and medicinal cannabis by as much as 90%, seeking to attract investment, create jobs and accelerate efforts to diversify its agricultural exports beyond tobacco,
Morocco’s King Mohammed VI broke ranks with the Muslim world by legalizing industrial and medical cannabis in 2021. However, this is not novel for the Kingdom which has long debated how to control cannabis in a conservative society that once had a healthy pharmaceutical trade with Europe before prohibition.
Two Ghanaian companies – MG Adom Limited and Jiliopta Limited – have become the first to receive licences to cultivate cannabis for medicinal and industrial purposes under the government’s regulated cannabis programme.
Rwanda’s first major cannabis project, a major production facility being constructed by the local subsidiary of KKOG California, has stalled over funding commitments and a land dispute that has tied up over US$10 million of investment capital.
Rwanda is positioning itself as a low-cost, export-only cannabis producer, and has tripled its budget for cannabis-related infrastructure to roughly US$5 million for the current financial year. Although its cannabis plans are shrouded in secrecy, the simplicity of its regulatory system is designed to attract foreign investors.
eSwatini is well known for its Swazi Gold cannabis landrace, but the Kingdom is looking to hemp as a key economic driver. The Agriculture Department has authorized a pilot project to see which varietals are most suited to local conditions.
Cannabis is being overlooked by Africa’s pharmaceutical industry says leading cannabis scientist Prof David Katerere. He says it’s time for SADC to have a roundtable to align policies and frameworks and collaborate on developing an Afrobotanical processing sector.
The study of Africa’s cannabis landraces has barely begun even though the continent is famed for its indigenous landraces. Lesotho cultivator WeGrow has identified 15 ‘source strains’ of African cannabis that deserve closer scientific attention.
FDLR rebels in the Eastern DRC developed a thriving cannabis industry to finance their war against Kinshasa. A former rebel leader says illegal mining and timber extraction funded the FLDR who were also in the cannabis trafficking business with UN peacekeepers.
Only six African countries are in the latest INCB quota review with a total 2026 quota of 74 824 kg allowed, less than the 90 000 kg quota that Israel enjoys. Nonetheless the continent’s production quota is up 27% from January, thanks to the DRCs’s emergence as an international player.
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