Marruecos concede las 10 primeras autorizaciones para el cultivo de cannabis
Mohamed el Gherruj's inauguration as interim director of the National Agency for the Regulation of Cannabis Activities (ANRAC) did not take long to take effect. After the measure allowing the cultivation and commercialisation of cannabis in Morocco was ratified in June last year, ANRAC has now issued the first 10 licences that make the production of this substance for medicinal, commercial and industrial purposes legal. The permits granted are located within the perimeter delimited for this activity, such as the provinces of Al Hoceima, Chefchaouen and Taunate.
As the Interior Minister of the Alaouite kingdom, Abdeluafi Laftit, has already stated, this measure is part of a search for new "development opportunities". It should be noted that Morocco has a large number of cannabis-growing areas throughout the country, and is one of the largest producers in the world. Therefore, one of the fundamental objectives of the initiative is to regulate all this activity and convert illegal production and commercialisation into legal, making this business a regulated, sustainable and income-generating activity for the Moroccan country.
As a result of illicit cannabis cultivation, the Rif region has been an area of conflict due to the illegal trafficking network that has been developing for years. This network counts Spain as its main destination and gateway for cannabis trafficking throughout Europe. Economic inequality in the region and high unemployment are two of the reasons that have also led to numerous protests in recent times. It is hoped that this situation could improve with the advent of legality in one of the most important businesses in the Rif.
It was at the beginning of last year that the process of legalising cannabis production reached the Moroccan House of Representatives. From 25 February 2021, the Executive of the then president, Saad Eddine El Othmani, began to study the proposal, as reported at the time by Morocco's official news agency. However, already at that time there were major concerns about the authorities' ability to control cannabis cultivation. To this end, the creation of a specific agency was established for this purpose, which is the same agency in charge of granting, withdrawing or renewing the licenses that have now been issued for the first time.
The first impulse to implement the legalisation of cannabis was the work of the United Nations Commission on Drugs. In December 2020 it removed the cannabis plant from the list of dangerous drugs, thanks to the favourable vote of 27 countries - one of them Morocco - out of the 53 that make up the UN Committee. Two months later, it was Morocco's National Narcotics Committee that did the same, paving the way for the subsequent legalisation of its cultivation, which is finally becoming a reality.