Morocco’s justice ministry announced that approximately 5,000 people who were found guilty of, or wanted for charges related to illegal cannabis production have been pardoned by Morocco’s king.
Morocco, a significant cannabis producer, has permitted the drug’s import, consumption, and cultivation for industrial or medicinal purposes since 2021; recreational use is still prohibited.
King Mohammed VI’s pardon will motivate farmers “to engage in the legal process of cannabis cultivation to improve their revenue and living conditions,” according to Mohammed El Guerrouj, the president of Morocco’s cannabis regulatory body ANRAC, who spoke with press reporters.
Official data from 2023 indicate that 294 metric tonnes of cannabis were harvested in Morocco for the first time. As of right now, legal shipments have totalled 225 kg, according to Guerrouj.
As more farming permits are issued and the local strain known as ANRAC permits Beldia, it is anticipated to be greater this year.
In parts of Northern Morocco where cannabis is the primary economic activity, there are around a million residents.
For years, people have grown and smoked it in public there, combining it with tobacco in long-stemmed pipes with clay bowls.
The goal of legalising cannabis in 2021 was to increase farmers’ profits and shield them from drug criminals who control the illegal cannabis export market.
To capitalise on the expanding global market for legal cannabis, Morocco granted 54 export licenses in the previous year.