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Rabat – Morocco’s House of Representatives adopted today Bill 13.21 on the legal use of cannabis for medical purposes.
The bill received a majority of votes (199) against 48 votes, who voted no.
The Justice and Development Party (PJD) was the only party of the government majority who rejected the bill.
Morocco’s government first adopted bill 13-21 on March 11. The decision to adopt the bill made Morocco the first African country to allow the use of cannabis for therapeutic purposes.
The Ministry of Interior said in a statement the bill will benefit farmers by raising their incomes. The bill is expected to create “promising and stable job opportunities,” it argued.
Meanwhile, the legal use of cannabis has been associated with efforts to reduce the negative repercussions caused by the spread of illicit cultivation.
The hope is that the legalization of the medical use of the plant will help reduce the “destructive effects” illicit cultivation on the environment, including deforestation and the burning of forests, Morocco’s Minister of Interior Abdelouafi Laftit said recently.
Earlier this week, the interior ministry announced the results of a study showing that the annual net income from cannabis for medical use could reach MAD 110,000 ($12,316) per hectare.
The study also shows that the legalization of cannabis could give Morocco an additional footing in European markets, including in Spain, the Netherlands, the UK, and Germany.
