The Independent UK reports that the Cabinet has now approved a Bill only a day after local press reported this wasn’t the case.
It does remind us of a few discussions we’ve had in the Marrakesh souk in the past !
Now we have a turnaround in a period of 48 hours
11 March this appears to be the latest we have a screenshot of the Morocco official government page that has the following short announcement
The Independent writes
Morocco’s government on Thursday approved a landmark bill that would legalize nonrecreational uses of marijuana.
Largely motivated by growing international demand for medical and industrial cannabis, the move will set the North African kingdom — among the top global producers — on the path of creating a regulated market for an industry that has long been dominated by drug traffickers.
The bill, which was approved by the Cabinet after numerous delays, will now be submitted to parliament. Some members of the powerful Islamist Justice and Development Party oppose the bill, but others support it, including the prime minister.
If it passes, Morocco would be one of the few countries in the region or in the Arab world to legalize the drug for nonrecreational use. Recreational use would remain illegal.
Morocco World News also says the same thing
Morocco’s government adopted today bill 13-21, intending to legalize the production of cannabis for medicinal and therapeutic use.
Morocco’s government adopted today bill 13-21, intending to legalize the production of cannabis for medicinal and therapeutic use.
Morocco Adopts Bill Legalizing Medical Production of Cannabis
The government of Morocco, the world’s top producer of hashish, ratified Thursday a draft law to legalise the medical use of cannabis but upheld a ban on its recreational use. Parliament, however, still needs to give its final approval to the legislation.
The draft law calls for the creation of a national agency to regulate the industry, and for the establishment of cooperatives that would grow “certified” cannabis plants.
The move would “reconvert illicit” cannabis plantations into “legal and durable activities that generate jobs”, according to the text of the draft legislation.
Figures released by Moroccan authorities this week showed that 55,000 hectares (around 136,000 acres) of land in the northern mountainous Rif region were being used to illicitly grow hashish in 2019.
Authorities did not give more recent estimates but in 2018 production was estimated at 45,000 hectares.
Legalising cannabis for medical use will position Morocco in a global market that is growing at an annual rate of 30 percent, and by 60 percent a year in Europe, according Morocco’s interior ministry.
State regulation will improve farmers’ living conditions and protect them from illegal drug trafficking networks, the ministry had said.
