The National Agency for the Legalization of Cannabis-related Activities (official) granted 10 licenses to engage in cannabis production activities, as well as the marketing and export of cannabis and its products for medical, pharmaceutical and industrial purposes in three provinces in the north of the country.
According to a statement by the agency, licenses will be granted to farmers to practice the cultivation and production of cannabis within the framework of “agricultural cooperatives”, gradually based on the needs expressed by industrial operators.
In March 2021, the Moroccan government ratified the law on the legal uses of cannabis, creating an agency (a body) whose tasks include coordinating all government sectors, public institutions and national and international partners with the aim of developing an agricultural chain of cannabis and granting licenses to farmers.
Conditions for obtaining a license
The National Agency for the Legalization of Activities Related to Cannabis requires farmers wishing to obtain licenses to practice cannabis cultivation activities to meet a number of conditions, most notably:
- The license applicant must have a certificate of ownership of the land plot registered in his name, or a document confirming the owner’s permission for the license applicant to grow cannabis attached to the ownership certificate, or a certificate delivered by the local administrative authority proving the license applicant’s exploitation of the land plot.
- Provide the plot design, along with its coordinates and area, delivered by a certified topographical engineer.
- Apply for a license to export or import hemp seeds and seedlings, and a license to process and manufacture hemp and its products, with an application dated and signed by the legal representative of the applicant.
important step
The number of farmers working in the cultivation of cannabis in Morocco is estimated at nearly 400,000 people, according to official figures.
Elias Arab, Vice President of the Sanhaja Rural Association, considers granting licenses to start practicing cannabis cultivation “an important and positive step in the path of legalizing the cultivation of the green plant and transforming its production towards medical and industrial uses.”
Arab, who is one of the sons of cannabis farmers, or “kif”, as he is known to Moroccans, stresses the need for farmers to benefit from the legalization of this cultivation in order to provide him with a respectable material income by exploiting the great demand for this plant in the international market in parallel with the increasing awareness of its benefits. Both in the medical and industrial sectors.
In a statement to “Sky News Arabia”, Arab considers that this project must be accompanied by accelerating development in the areas of cannabis cultivation in the Kingdom and creating projects that enable the provision of job opportunities for the children of farmers while strengthening basic infrastructure.
The speaker points out the importance of rehabilitating farmers to keep pace with this transformation, as well as communicating with them to understand the contents of the project to legalize agriculture, which they have practiced for many years outside the framework of the law.
Aarab affirms that Morocco’s benefit from the promising opportunities offered by the international cannabis market, “will contribute to moving the wheel of the economy in the areas related to the cultivation of “Al-Kif” and will help provide financial resources to the treasury and support the national economy as a whole.”
support the economy
The Moroccan Ministry of the Interior had submitted a feasibility study, in which it reviewed the expected income from the cultivation of cannabis, and the position that Morocco is expected to occupy in the global cannabis market.
According to the data of the study, the net income per hectare of cannabis cultivation can reach about 110 thousand dirhams annually (about 13 thousand dollars).
A first hypothesis predicted that the share of Morocco’s production from the European market would reach 10% of the total market by 2028, which amounts to 420 million dollars annually.
As for the second hypothesis, it expected that the Kingdom’s activity in the cannabis market would reach 15 percent, which represents annual revenues of approximately $630 million.
The markets of European countries, especially Spain, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and Germany, are the main markets for Morocco, due to a number of factors, most notably the geographical proximity to the European continent.
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