Dear Mr President and Honourable Ministers,
We, the undersigned members of South Africa’s cannabis community, express our deep concern at the escalating crisis caused by the absence of a coherent, workable and constitutionally sound regulatory framework for cannabis.
The status quo is untenable.
Eight years after the Constitutional Court recognised adults’ rights to privately use, possess and cultivate cannabis, South Africa remains trapped in regulatory uncertainty. The Cannabis for Private Purposes Act (CfPPA), signed in May 2024, has yet to commence. Despite 2,807 public submissions on the draft regulations, final regulations remain unpublished, delaying the Act’s commencement and consequential amendments to the Drugs and Drug Trafficking Act.
Compounding this crisis, medical cannabis providers report that SAHPRA has largely ceased approving Section 21 applications since 18 July 2026, jeopardising the principal existing pathway through which doctors obtain authorisation for patients to access locally manufactured, unregistered cannabis medicines.
The consequences are real, widespread and increasingly damaging.
Consumers and cultivators continue to report harassment, arrests, confiscations and corruption involving law enforcement. Patients with serious medical conditions, particularly those with multidrug-resistant epilepsy who have benefited from prescribed cannabinoid medicines, face interruptions to potentially life-changing treatment.
Traditional growers, small enterprises and emerging businesses remain excluded from meaningful economic participation. Meanwhile, cannabis establishments proliferate under questionable compliance claims and inconsistent legal interpretations, leaving consumers inadequately protected and responsible operators without certainty.
South Africa is also losing opportunities for investment, agricultural development, beneficiation, exports and job creation. An inclusive, properly regulated cannabis economy could contribute significantly to rural livelihoods and national economic growth.
The cannabis community has not been sitting on its hands.
For years, civil society, patients, traditional growers, researchers, healthcare practitioners, legal professionals and industry representatives have developed practical, evidence-informed solutions. We have submitted recommendations, participated in consultations and produced best-practice guidelines drawing on international experience while adapting them to South Africa’s unique circumstances.
These proposals include a regulated framework enabling cultivators to supply the private-use market, with appropriate oversight by the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition, and a distinct SAHPRA pathway for registering quality-assured cannabinoid medicines.
We recognise the complexities of cannabis regulation. However, solutions exist. What remains missing is coordinated implementation and meaningful engagement with those possessing the necessary expertise.
We call upon government to take the following urgent actions:
- Finalise and publish the CfPPA regulations, taking account of public submissions, and establish a clear timetable for parliamentary approval and commencement.
- Implement the consequential legislative amendments, including those affecting the Drugs and Drug Trafficking Act, to establish legal certainty.
- Ensure constitutionally compliant policing, with clear national directives, training and accountability for unlawful harassment, confiscation and corruption.
- Require SAHPRA to urgently restore effective Section 21 access, enabling doctors to continue treating patients with serious, treatment-resistant conditions without unnecessary interruption.
- Establish a regulatory category for quality-assured cannabinoid medicines, enabling appropriately manufactured South African products to be registered, prescribed, dispensed and considered for reimbursement under applicable healthcare arrangements.
- Develop an inclusive commercial framework, including regulated cultivation and supply for the private-use market, appropriate quality standards, and meaningful participation by traditional growers and small enterprises.
- Coordinate implementation across government, with clear departmental responsibilities, measurable milestones and transparent public reporting.
We are not asking for an absence of regulation. We are demanding effective regulation.
We want laws, standards, accountability, public health protection, human rights, economic opportunity and legal certainty. Above all, we want an end to the confusion, conflict and unnecessary harm that have persisted for far too long.
The overwhelming majority of our community wants to live, work, cultivate, access medicine and participate responsibly in a lawful, properly regulated environment.
We have solutions. We have expertise. We are ready to contribute. Government must now act.
We request a formal written response from the Presidency and relevant Ministers within 14 working days of receipt of this letter, together with a publicly accountable timetable for implementing the CfPPA and addressing the broader regulatory crisis.
South Africa cannot afford another eight years of uncertainty.
Yours sincerely,
The Cannabis Crisis Coalition (CCC)
Endorsed by the undersigned organisations, associations, businesses, healthcare professionals, cultivators, patients and concerned citizens of South Africa. Due to the current legal uncertainty, some endorsements have requested that their names are withheld.
To sign the letter by the deadline of midnight 4 November 2026, click here
