Cannabis is legal in South Africa for personal use.
In 2018, the Constitutional Court of South Africa legalised the possession, cultivation, and use of cannabis in private spaces by adults.
It is still illegal to sell or distribute cannabis and to use cannabis in public or drive while under the influence of cannabis.
Medical cannabis products may be prescribed for any health condition, once the presiding physician determines that it could assist in treatment.
Cannabis is the most widely used drug in South Africa.
Cannabis for local consumption is produced and grown in South Africa predominantly in KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape, as well as in neighbouring countries such as Lesotho, Swaziland and Malawi.
Due to legalisation, there have been shifts in the country's production, with less demand for low-grade cannabis.
Medicines and Related Substances Act (Act 101 of 1965).
Cannabis for Private Purposes Act 7 of 2024.
President Cyril Ramaphosa signed the Cannabis for Private Purposes Act into law the day before the 29 May 2024 elections, but it allows only for the private cultivation, possession and consumption of the plant.
Legislation to finally allow for legal trade in cannabis is likely to be tabled in Parliament early in 2025 as part of a series of initiatives that are underway to regulate and regularise the industry.
A new Bill is likely to be brought before Parliament to address this legal conundrum and in the process provide some kind of legal framework for the hundreds of cannabis retailers and dispensaries across SA who are currently breaking the law by trading.
An overarching cannabis Act is likely to be tabled by the Trade, Industry & Competition Minister Parks Tau during the course of 2025 as part of a package of initiatives to speed up the process, which has dragged on since 2018. It would create an overarching framework for the various components of the industry, which thus far has been severely constrained by a lack of finance, complex and costly regulatory systems and uneven regulatory reform.
The government's national cannabis master plan has been moved from the Agriculture Ministry, where it had been since 2021 and is now being driven by Tau's department, due to a strategy review at Cabinet level. Government sources say the move was necessary for the creation and implementation of an overarching national policy to regulate the cannabis and hemp industries and to stimulate the creation of an infant industry.
So far, nine government departments have been involved in the process, with Agriculture taking the lead, resulting in delays due to both bureaucratic drag and a lack of a common vision over how to develop cannabis policy and what it should entail.
The Constitutional Court in 2018 confirmed the right of South Africans to grow, possess and consume cannabis in private and ordered the government to pass the necessary legislation. It took the state six years to do so. A master plan was developed, but the process lost momentum, despite Ramaphosa convening an Operation Phakisa forum around cannabis to bring together all the roleplayers and get it moving again.
2. Criminality in South Africa
3. New Bill expected to address cannabis conundrum
4. Cannabis Cultivation Licences in South Africa
5. Cannabis Dispensaries in South Africa
Please link to this page if you mention it in an article or newsletter.
<a href="https://www.daggadiaries.com/countries/cannabis-in-south-africa">Legality of Cannabis in South Africa</a>
The legality of cannabis varies widely across Africa. In some countries, cannabis is illegal, and possession or use can result in severe penalties. In other countries, cannabis is legal or decriminalised for medical or recreational use.
It is important to note that the laws and penalties related to cannabis can change frequently and vary by jurisdiction. It is always a good idea to research the current law and regulations before using or possessing cannabis in any country.