Morocco is expanding the cultivation of cannabis and increasing its area 8-fold

Morocco – The Moroccan authorities increased the areas of land allowed for the cultivation of cannabis this year to 2,078 hectares, an increase of eight times over last year.

In 2021, the authorities adopted a law regulating the cultivation of the Indian cannabis plant for medical and industrial purposes, with the aim of exploiting the economic opportunities offered by the global market, where cultivation, harvesting, marketing and export operations are subject to strict control, and the first legal crop was harvested last year at regarding 296 tons.

The revenues of the global medical cannabis market reached $16.5 billion in 2019, while expectations say that this number will reach $44.4 billion in 2024, which is what Morocco seeks to pay attention to.

The cultivation of cannabis has been common in several Moroccan regions for decades, where its leaves are turned into the traditional drug “hashish”, but it was legally banned in the 1950s, without practically disappearing, especially in the north of the country, where farmers were working in the fields far from the country. The attention of the authorities, and the production was often smuggled, especially towards European markets.

A study issued by the Ministry of the Interior in 2021 estimated that the number of Moroccans who were working in the illegal cultivation of the Indian cannabis plant was regarding 400,000 people.

After legalizing this cultivation, farmers in the legally designated areas began requesting licenses from the government agency, and the number of licenses increased from 609 licenses last year to 2,342 licenses this year. The authorities also granted 168 licenses to 61 investors, adding to the 82 investors last year.

The first legal export of “hashish”, extracted from Indian hemp, took place last April, to Switzerland for medicinal purposes, and shipments of products were exported by Moroccan companies to Europe, currently reaching a total of 55 kilograms sold at a rate of $1,500 per kilogram, according to the statement. Data from the National Agency for the Legalization of Activities Related to Marijuana.

Source: RT + agencies