South Africa occupies a unique position in the rapidly developing legal cannabis market. With a government that seeks to legalize and develop the cannabis and hemp sectors as a sunshine industry and a private and community sector desperately willing to engage, this should be a match made in heaven. Yet the country finds itself in a regulatory quagmire with market forces, both legal and illegal, now in control. Cannabiz Africa is your front row on the torturous journey towards a regulated adult-use commercial market.
The Government is not acting fast enough to protect its own cannabis genetic resource base and ensuring that communities ‘own’ the IP to the landraces they have been cultivating for generations. Although this is official policy, H3’s Charl Botha writes here there needs to be more urgency in implementation.
Cheeba Africa co-founder Trenton Birch says it’s crystal clear that government is struggling to move the dial forward on cannabis reform. He says that puts a load of responsibility onto private sector players to keep up the change momentum and lead the way.
One of South Africa’s true cannabis legends, traditional doctor Sharon Price, has passed away. The unexpected news has sent a shockwave through the cannabis community, which will miss her healing wisdom, medical cannabis teachings and treatments and her deep knowledge of the plant.
The ripples of xenophobia have hit the cannabis sector, with a senior Ghanaian stakeholder pulling out of next week’s ICS 2026 Cape Town conference. Mark Darko cited safety concerns for his withdrawal, which he says is in line with Ghana’s travel warnings to its citizens about staying clear of SA.
The National Cannabis Master Plan is coming off the rails – again. The DTIC’s promise to prioritize cannabis reform has run out of momentum with no sign of the draft cannabis commercialization policy that was meant to be put to Parliament this session.
The Cannabis Expo has put paid to any doubt as to who’s in control of cannabis in the country says CEO Silas Howarth. It’s not the government or big business – it’s the consumer! This is the real force shaping the industry because of its insatiable demand and sheer spending power.
Gareth Prince’s urgent application to halt cannabis arrests has become enmeshed by the slow wheels of justice. While the legal activist says he’ll use the delay to bolster his case, he warns that ‘illegal’ cannabis arrests will continue until the next court date of 31 July. This is Prince’s report back to Cannabiz Africa.
Gareth Prince’s urgent High Court application to halt cannabis arrests has been delayed on procedural grounds and will only be heard again on 31 July 2026. The Western Cape Judge President acknowledged the urgency of the action, but said no space could be found on the court role for six weeks.
International cannabis thought leaders from across the world are to descend on Cape Town at the end of the month for ICS 2026. Organizer Sean Hocking tells Cannabiz Africa that the Back to Basics theme is aimed at breaking North American and European dominance in determining the world’s cannabis regulatory systems.
The Cannabis Trade Association of Africa (CTAA) has launched a compliance platform that provides a route to market for legacy cannabis growers. It’s new portal aims to link growers to retailers in a framework that ticks all government’s compliance boxes and provides a market for landraces.
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