Cannabis and Uganda

Recently Uganda was in the news regarding a controversy surrounding its health ministry, an Israeli company and the cannabis plant. The Israeli company claimed that it had been given permission by the Ugandan government to cultivate cannabis for its research purposes and potential export to other countries. The Ugandan government however denied having given any permission.

What the news highlighted was the increasing interest in cannabis among both African nations and global cannabis companies. Africa is known to possess some of the world's best natural varieties of cannabis, varieties that have not yet been tampered with to increase the amounts of some compounds at the cost of others. With most Western countries not having a climate suitable for outdoor cultivation of cannabis year around, with restrictive laws, regulations and limits regarding cultivation as well as distribution of cannabis, with high cost of cultivation and production and with the lack of diverse natural varieties of cannabis, African nations such as Uganda are looking more and more lucrative. Many companies are banking on a lack of awareness of the potential of cannabis among African nations and of what is happening in North America and Europe. In Europe alone over the next few years the legal cannabis industry is pegged at more than 100 billion Euros.

It is important for Uganda to come up to speed with what is happening at the cutting edge of cannabis legalization. The country needs to document, protect and revive its indigenous cannabis varieties. It needs to support its farmers in their cultivation of cannabis especially the smaller farmers. It needs to create the right processing, distribution and marketing channels for the plant nationally and internationally. Small farmers and home growing need to be encouraged first of all so that the plant is accessible and affordable to all locally especially the poorest, the minorities, the indigenous communities, the elderly, the ill, the youth and women as a safe universal medicinal and recreational plant. Economy, industry, business and tourism need to be developed around the plant. Research and education centered on the plant, especially through industry, government and universities needs to be encouraged. Law enforcement action currently focused on cannabis needs to be realigned to address more serious issues like violent crime, environmental crime, theft and economic fraud. Persons imprisoned for cannabis should be freed and all action being taken to destroy the plant needs to cease immediately. Only when these things are done will the harms that have grown in the absence of cannabis be reduced and possibly controlled.

The 2020 UNODC World Drug Report stated that Uganda was one of the countries through which heroin was being trafficked to Western and Central Europe through the 'southern route'. This is an indication of the proliferation of not just heroin but possibly other opioids and drugs like methamphetamine, synthetic cannabinoids and non-medical use of prescription drugs. All this thrives in the conducive atmosphere creating by the recreational prohibition of cannabis.

Uganda needs to unite with other African nations and traditional cannabis nations to form a powerful voice in the UN and on the world stage to get cannabis removed from the UN list of Scheduled 4 substances under the Single Convention Treaty and get it legalized for adult recreational use world wide. The gains in terms of health, trade and sustainable development as a result will be immense. Other African nations showing signs of taking positive action with regard to the cannabis plant are South Africa, Liberia, Ghana, Kenya, Egypt, Zimbabwe.

 

In December 2020, the UN voted to remove cannabis from its most restricted Schedule IV category of the 1961 Single Convention Treaty on Narcotic Drugs. It does however still remain in Schedule I, which is the least restrictive. This one move by the UN itself should be sufficient to bring about the recreational legalization of cannabis in every nation and an overhaul of national drug laws

Listed below are articles taken from various media related to the above subject. Words in italics are the thoughts of your truly at the time of reading the article.    

'The main countries identified in which heroin was trafficked along the southern route to Western and Central Europe over the period 2014– 2018 included India, the Gulf countries (notably Qatar and United Arab Emirates) and a number of Southern and East African countries (notably South Africa, Kenya, Ethiopia, Mozambique, the United Republic of Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, Uganda and Madagascar). The European countries reporting most trafficking along the southern route over the period 2014–2018 were Belgium (mostly via Kenya, Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda, South Africa, Ethiopia and the United Republic of Tanzania) and Italy (mostly via Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, South Africa, Ethiopia, Madagascar and Oman).' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_Booklet_3.pdf

Everybody's using the plant and everybody's being sooo sneaky about it. Why? Can people just get together and legalize the plant without trying to make a quick buck at the plant's cost because everybody should have access to it.

'The assertions debunk Together Pharma’s pronouncements that it had the necessary approvals to grow the crop in Uganda and set up an extraction facility.

On its website, Industrial Hemp Uganda Limited shows that it is already growing medical cannabis in the country. It states: “The Company is primarily engaged in the growing and development of medical cannabis (medical marijuana) and cannabis products for industrial purposes in Uganda.”'
http://dispatch.ug/2019/04/09/ugandas-health-minister-disowns-israeli-firms-marijuana-farm-plans/


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