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In northern Morocco, there are vast fields of cannabis plants ready for harvesting. But farmers in the village of Azila, where hemp is cultivated in large tracts of land, are not happy. They are facing stiff competition from hemp produced in EuropeÂ
In northern Morocco, there are vast fields of cannabis plants ready for harvesting. But farmers in the village of Azila, where hemp is cultivated in large tracts of land are not happy. They are facing stiff competition from hemp produced in Europe.
Farmers want the Moroccan government to speed up the implementation of a 2021 law legalising the industrial and medicinal use of the plant. The new legislation governs all aspects of cannabis regularisation, covering cultivation, importation of seeds, and export of products.
Farmers feel that without foolproof legislation, many uncertainties exist, such as the tenor of the regulation, the definition of the medicinal values of hemp, what constitutes industrial use, how it can be marketed, etc. At the same, farmers feel that the potential earnings of a relaxed policy on hemp are enormous and could help bring the marginalised area out of its economic crisis. Several states in the US made cultivation of hemp legal, helping the farmers to collectively mop up more than US$26 billion. Morocco is said to be the world’s largest producer of hashish.
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The cannabis plant has been grown in the Rif region for centuries. It has been a major source of illicit hemp smuggled into Europe. The authorities have tended to turn a blind eye to the trade. The official version is somewhat different. They maintain that it’s important to not rush the implementation of the legalisation project. They want to make sure that all the correct regulations and authorisations are in place.
