Colombia's National University to offer cannabis cultivation courses

The National University of Colombia, based in Bogotá, has announced on its website that it plans to run courses in growing cannabis for medical use. The course will start on August 26, 2017 and end on October 14, 2017. It will take place every Saturday in the Faculty of Agronomic Sciences from 1pm to 6pm. Lasting a total of 40 hours, it costs 850,000 Colombian pesos (around 250 euros).

The course will be open to the general public. Anyone wishing to study the subject independently of their initial training is welcome to take the course.

On its website, the Colombian faculty explains that this course aims to promote learning about the plant, in particular its varieties, the basic principles of medicinal cannabis cultivation and its cosmetic uses as part of the legalization of medical cannabis in Colombia. The aim of the course is «to teach the scientific basis of cannabis cultivation, its process and its social and dynamic efforts», writes the University.

Course objectives

Those taking this course will be able to identify, analyze and benefit from the methodology of medical cannabis crop development. They will be able to deepen their knowledge of the various cannabis varieties and consolidate medical cannabis harvesting capacities. They will also be able to exploit cultivation techniques adapted to Colombia's eco-systems.

In addition, the course aims to identify how medical cannabis works, in particular its interactions with the the body's endocannabinoid system and its possible uses, taking into account the current legalization of medical cannabis.

This initiative was submitted in 2011 by the head office of Bogotá's Department of Agricultural Sciences. At the time, the country's Health and Welfare Council refused the request. In the end, it was the University's Faculty of Agronomic Sciences that confirmed that the training would take place at the city's headquarters, with the motto: «Generating learning about legalization, varieties and handling the basics of medicinal cannabis cultivation».

Kwantlen Polytechnic University in Vancouver also teaches culture and the sale of cannabis.

Mehdi Bautier