Rabat – Morocco has approved licenses for 67 cannabis-based products, marking one of the most important steps yet in the country’s effort to build a regulated legal market.
The newly licensed items include 26 cosmetic products and 41 dietary supplements, all officially registered with the Moroccan Agency for Medicines and Health Products, the Marijuana Herald news platform reported.
The approvals come as the National Agency for the Regulation of Cannabis Activities has stepped up its work to supervise the sector. Officials say the agency has already carried out more than 2,200 inspections to ensure that businesses are respecting national laws and meeting quality standards.
Farmers planted 4,400 hectares of the traditional “beldiya” variety this season, which is more than three times the area cultivated last year, states report.
It added that the government hopes the move will support rural economies in cannabis-growing regions, where thousands of families depend on the plant.
With this shift from an informal market to a regulated system, officials aim to improve farmers’ incomes while also attracting investment and generating new tax revenue.
Morocco’s decision to legalize cannabis for medical, cosmetic, and industrial purposes came in 2021 after long debates. In March of that year, the government approved a draft law, and in May, the parliament voted to legalize the plant for specific uses.
A second parliamentary vote in June confirmed the legislation, which became known as Law 13-21. Recreational use of cannabis remains prohibited, but the law set out a new framework for controlled cultivation and the creation of a national regulatory agency.
The reform was particularly significant in Morocco because the country has long been one of the world’s leading producers of cannabis resin, despite the crop being illegal for decades.
Cannabis was officially banned after Morocco’s independence in 1956 and further restricted under a complete prohibition in 1974. Yet cultivation remains widespread, especially in the northern Rif region, where many rural families rely on it as their main source of income.
The first legal cultivation zones were designated in northern provinces such as Al Hoceima, Chefchaouen, and Taounate. Since then, production has steadily increased under official supervision.
