Pictured here: SACHIDA chair Katelego Kgopotse. and deputy Cian McClelland
The South African cannabis sector is about to face one of its biggest challenges to date, ironically from the first piece of legislation regulating cannabis.
Cannabis Act Becoming Law Will Be a Big Challenge
The final regulations for the Cannabis for Private Purposes Act of 2024 are to be published soon, and once that is done, the Act will finally become law. And, according to the deputy chairperson of the South African Cannabis and Hemp Industry Development Association (SACHIDA), Cian McClelland, once this happens, all the contradictions within the law, are going to become the private sector’s problem.
The core problem, McClelland explains to Cannabiz Africa, is that it while the Act legalizes private consumption and possession, it criminalizes the buying and selling of cannabis products and does not attempt to accommodate legacy growers or private cannabis clubs, or businesses trying to become legitimate.
“This is a huge issue for the cannabis community” says McClelland. “We have been working with the DTIC to develop a commercial framework for cannabis that would regulate the sale of products and legitimize the already thriving domestic cannabis economy. Once the Cannabis Act becomes operationalized, the ‘Grey Zone’ is going to become several shades darker with even businesses that are trying to be complaint or operate within the current framework becoming increasingly vulnerable”.
“Even though the Cannabis Act coming into law will automatically remove cannabis from the Drugs Act, there are still severe penalties for ‘dealing’, with the Medicines Act allowing for up to 10 years jail time for ‘dealing’, even though at this stage it’s not clear what quantity of cannabis amounts to dealing.”
Essential that the Industry Unify in the Face of New Regulations
McClelland says that the Cannabis Act allows for a future commercial framework, but this could realistically be another two years in the making. In the short-term, he says, the private sector will have to face regulatory hurdles that are in direct opposition to government’s stated objectives in government reform.
“It is essential that the industry engage with any new regulations as a united front rather than in fragmented, sector based responses” says McClelland. “ A splintered industry speaking with many competing voices weakens its own hand at precisely the moment collective input is most needed.
To this end, SACHIDA has announced a substantial reduction in its membership fees, ahead of its upcoming AGM, which will be held in November 2024. It says it wants a far broader base of growers, processors, traders and community organisations to join the Association “at a time when unity across the sector becomes all the more urgent.”
SACHIDA chairman Katelego Kgopotse says the fee reduction is a direct, practical step towards that unity: “We have made progress, but it has been slower than any of us would like. But we cannot wait on the sidelines. The industry needs a home where growers, traders, processors and communities can speak with one voice, going into both the regulatory consultation and our November AGM which will be held in hybrid format so that members can attend in person or online.
“Growing the membership base now, ahead of the AGM, is central to ensuring the association’s leadership and priorities are shaped by a genuinely representative cross-section of the industry. A broader, more affordable membership is therefore preparation for both the regulatory consultation ahead and the AGM itself. We want to provide a home that is affordable and accessible to everyone, not just those who can afford it. That is why we have taken the decision to bring our fees down substantially, and in many cases to zero.”
SACHIDA in its own words: Promulgation, even an imperfect Act, remains the priority
SACHIDA continues to prioritise its parliamentary and departmental lobbying campaign in support of promulgating the Cannabis for Private Purposes Act. The association is candid that the Act, and the draft regulations that will accompany it, are not without flaws, and that meaningful concerns remain about enforcement mechanisms and practical implementation.
However, SACHIDA’s position is that promulgation is a necessary first step rather than an endpoint. Cannabis currently remains listed as a Schedule 6 substance under the Drugs and Drugs Trafficking Act, 1992, and it is this listing — rather than the substance of the Act itself — that continues to expose ordinary cultivators and traders to inconsistent enforcement, and in some cases to harassment and extortion by rogue elements within law enforcement.
Removing cannabis from that Act, which only takes effect on promulgation of the Cannabis for Private Purposes Act, is regarded by SACHIDA as the single most urgent legal reform facing the industry.
Regulatory refinement, SACHIDA maintains, can and should follow through ongoing consultation with the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development and the DTIC, with SACHIDA’s legal representative, David Dison, continuing to engage directly with the Department to maintain pressure on the process — but that refinement cannot begin until promulgation itself occurs.
About SACHIDA
The South African Cannabis and Hemp Industry Development Association (SACHIDA) is a non-profit company (NPC Registration 2024/512763/08) representing the full breadth of South Africa’s cannabis and hemp sector — including Indigenous Knowledge Systems custodians, community and commercial growers, cannabis clubs, retailers, licensed cultivation and processing facilities, traders and research institutions. SACHIDA’s mission is to unite the industry, preserve and integrate Indigenous Knowledge Systems, and advocate for a fair, workable regulatory framework for cannabis and hemp in South Africa.
For more details
Katlego Kgopotse, Chairman, SACHIDA
Email: chairman@sachida.org.za
Tel: +27 71 084 2862
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