South Africa legalises cannabis sale, use by adults in private settings

South Africa has legalised the propagation, sale and use of Cannabis also known as dagga by adults in private settings.

This follows a move by President Cyril Ramaphosa to sign into law the Cannabis for Private Purposes Act (CfPPA) which regulates the cultivation, possession and use of the drug.

The bill prohibits the dealing of cannabis but removed the drug from the Drugs and Drugs Trafficking Act, abolishing criminal sanctions for its private use.

"The consequent regulatory reform enabled by the CfPPA will, amongst others, entirely remove cannabis from the Drugs and Drug Trafficking Act. This will further enable amendment of the Schedules to the Medicines and Related Substances Act and provide for targeted regulatory reform of the Plant Breeders Rights Act and the Plant Improvement Act, as well as other pieces of legislation that require amendment to allow for the industrialisation of the cannabis sector," a statement by the Presidency said.

The Bill further guides the medically prescribed administration of cannabis to a child while also protecting children from undue exposure to cannabis.

It also prohibits the public use or dealing of cannabis to protect against exposure to children.

"The law provides for an alternative manner by which to address the issue of the prohibited use, possession of, or dealing in, cannabis by children, with due regard to the best interest of the child," the statement adds.

PRESIDENT ASSENTS TO THE CANNABIS PRIVATE PURPOSES BILL

President @CyrilRamaphosa has signed into law the Cannabis for Private Purposes Act (“CfPPA”). The CfPPA regulates the cultivation, possession, and use of cannabis by adults in a private setting. https://t.co/6kRLkdtmM8

— The Presidency 🇿🇦 (@PresidencyZA) May 28, 2024

While still categorised as an illicit drug in Kenya and a gateway to addiction and abuse of other psychoactive substances, the drug is amongst the most widely abused illicit substances with the National Authority for the Campaign Against Alcohol and Drug Abuse (NACADA) raising concerns that its use has risen by 90 per cent in the last five years.

"Consumption of bhang in the last five years has gone up by 90 per cent, and based on 2022 research, nearly a million Kenyans are using cannabis sativa; that is, one in every 53 people are using this drug in the country," NACADA CEO Dr Anthony Omerikwa said two months ago during a night raid on bhang dens in Mtwapa area, Kilifi County.

Cannabis remains a controlled substance and is scheduled under the Single Narcotic Convention of 1961 as amended by the 1972 protocol, the Convention on Psychotropic Substances of 1971 and the United Nations Convention against illicit trafficking in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances of 1988.

Elsewhere, however, the drug has gained popularity and is used in treating chronic pain and other ailments.

In 2018, the South Africa Constitutional Court issued a landmark ruling declaring it unconstitutional to prohibit cannabis use by adults.

"It will not be a criminal offence for an adult to use or be in possession of cannabis in private for his or her personal consumption," Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo said and ordered Parliament to draft new laws within 24 months to reflect the order.

The parliament delayed affecting the order for years until Monday when the bill was finally signed into law.

South Africa now joins a list of countries that have legalized the drug and imposed regulations on its use including Uruguay which legalized it for adults in 2013, Canada in 2018, Malta in 2021, Luxembourg in 2023 and Germany in April this year.