Parliament approves medicinal cannabis cultivation

Added on 15 December 2023

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Parliament approves medicinal cannabis cultivation

GHANA – Parliament on Thursday granted Mr Ambrose Dery, Minister for the Interior, the authority to grant licenses and permit the cultivation of cannabis, a drug obtained from the hemp plant (cannabis sativo), for medicinal and industrial purposes.

However, the cultivation would not exceed more than 0.3 per cent tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) content (the active ingredient) on a dry weight basis for industrial and medicinal purposes.

Consequently, the regulation would license the cultivation, processing, distribution, sale, export and importation of cultivars, grains, seeds and biomass of cannabis with not more than 0.3 per cent THC content.

The approval was a result of the maturity of the regulation after being laid before the House on Thursday, November 9, 2023, by Mr Dery, under Article 11(7) (a) of the Constitution and Order 77 of the Standing Orders of Parliament.

Mr Alban Bagbin, the Speaker, therefore referred the Instrument to the Subsidiary Legislation Committee for consideration and report to the House subsequently.

The Legislative Instrument (LI) will also provide for a strict licensing regime throughout the value chain, that is from production and processing to transportation and distribution.