Lawmakers in Ghana legalize hemp cultivation

The West African nation of Ghana has passed legislation allowing hemp to be grown for industrial or medicinal purposes.

The legislation allows the government to “grant a licence for the cultivation of cannabis which has not more than 0.3% THC content on a dry-weight basis for industrial purposes for obtaining fibre or seed or for medicinal purposes.”

The hemp language came as an amendment to a larger bill about illegal narcotics. The measure does not specify how those hemp-cultivation licenses would be awarded.

The bill establishes the Narcotics Control Commission, a body responsible for controlling and eliminating narcotic drug trafficking, according to the Ghana News Agency.

Malawi, Zambia and Lesotho are among the other African nations that have legalized or relaxed laws on cannabis.