ANRAC issued the first permits for the processing, manufacture, marketing and export of cannabis for medicinal and industrial purposes
The entry into office of Mohamed el Gherruj as interim director of the National Agency for the Regulation of Cannabis Activities (ANRAC) did not take long to take effect. Following the ratification of the measure authorizing the cultivation and marketing of cannabis in Morocco last June, ANRAC has now issued the first 10 licenses that make the production of this substance legal for medicinal, commercial and industrial purposes. The permits granted are located within the perimeter delimited for this activity, such as the provinces of Al Hoceima, Chefchaouen and Taunate.
As Abdeluafi Laftit, the interior minister of the Alaouite kingdom, has already declared, this measure is part of the search for new “opportunities for development”. 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 marketing into legal ones, making this trade a regulated, sustainable and income-generating activity for the Moroccan country.
Due to the illicit cultivation of cannabis, the Rif region has been a conflict zone due to the illegal trafficking network that has been growing for years. This network counts Spain as its main destination and gateway for cannabis trafficking throughout Europe. The economic inequalities in the region and the high unemployment rate are two of the reasons that have also led to many 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 early last year that the process of legalizing cannabis production reached Morocco’s House of Representatives. As early as February 25, 2021, then-President Saad Eddine El Othmani’s executive began to study the proposal, as the official Moroccan news agency reported at the time. However, already at the time, the ability of the authorities to control the cultivation of cannabis raised great concerns. For this purpose, a specific agency has been created, which is the same agency in charge of granting, withdrawing or renewing the licenses that were issued for the first time.
The first impetus to implement the legalization 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 favorable vote of 27 countries – including Morocco – out of the 53 on the United Nations Committee. Two months later, Morocco’s National Narcotics Committee did the same, paving the way for the subsequent legalization of its cultivation, which is finally becoming a reality.
