Lebanon: Parliament approves the cultivation of low-THC cannabis

On Tuesday, the Lebanese parliament passed a law to legalize the cultivation of cannabis with a THC content of -1% for medical and industrial uses, making Lebanon the first Arab country to partially legalize cannabis cultivation.

The bill was introduced in July 2018, and then approved by the parliamentary committees and was awaiting a vote by Parliament. Hezbollah, which is often accused of financing itself through cannabis cultivation, among other means, opposed the bill.

According to the new law, the cultivation of cannabis with a THC content of -1% will be permitted for specialized agricultural cooperatives established in Lebanon, for Lebanese citizens such as farmers or landowners, as well as for laboratories and research centers qualified to work with controlled substances.

Licenses, issued by a future regulatory authority, may be granted to Lebanese pharmaceutical companies, industries capable of processing hemp fibers or extracting oils, and foreign companies that hold a license to operate in the cannabis industry in their country of origin.

However, the new law does not legalize cannabis with a high THC content or cannabis for adult use. For now, Lebanon aims to promote a new legal industry for cannabis-based pharmaceutical products, including wellness products and CBD oil. Industrial products, such as textile fibers, may also be manufactured from the plant.

The bill has already drawn widespread criticism, as Al Jazeera’s Beirut correspondent, Timour Azhari, points out.

Read about the law and its many issues here https://t.co/grRuAvyDM0

— Timour Azhari (@timourazhari) April 21, 2020

Lebanon, a long-standing producer of cannabis and exporter of resin, is not directly tackling the black market by legalizing only part of the plant. The pressure on Lebanon’s judicial and correctional systems will also remain unchanged, as the new law does not disrupt the local, illegal cannabis trade.