ALBAWABA - Lebanon recently made headlines after legalizing the cultivation of cannabis for medical and industrial purposes to boost the country's economy and reduce its budget deficit, as reported by Al Jazeera.
According to several sources, the Lebanese government formed a new sector to oversee and manage cannabis sales to local and international pharmaceutical firms. This move will allow farmers who used to harvest and cultivate cannabis illegally to operate openly.
Lebanon legalizes cannabis to boost economy
Al Jazeera reports that despite a decline in cannabis agriculture in Lebanon due to security concerns and factory raids, the slopes of Hermel are covered with 450 hectares of cannabis.
Many farmers cultivating cannabis in Hermel are wanted by the Lebanese government for drug trafficking. Additionally, they claim that growing cannabis is cheaper than growing apples.
The Cannabis Cultivation Management Committee and the Lebanese parliament passed a law back in 2020, which allowed the cultivation of the plant for medical purposes only. Additionally, the legal cultivation is expected to bring in $1 billion annually to the state treasury, according to the American consulting company McKinsey.
