The Provincial Government of KwaZulu-Natal has welcomed the passing of the Cannabis for Private Purposes Bill by the National Assembly this week, after almost five years in the making.
Member of the Executive Council for Economic Development, Tourism, and Environmental Affairs Siboniso Duma said they are confident the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) will expedite the process to ensure the bill is instituted.
“We remain encouraged that we are a step closer to having the bill become the Act and the law,” Duma said.
“We want to be the leading exporter of the product, and we are making our agencies ready to assist the emerging small players.
“The important agencies are Trade and Investment KZN for export purposes and partnerships with exporters and other investors. Dube Trade Port and Richards Bay IDZ for agro-processing facilities and land,” he added.
The bill was first published in the Government Gazette on August 7, 2020.
It materialised after the Prince judgment in 2018 by the Constitutional Court, which recognised that South Africans have the right to possess and consume cannabis in their private spaces.
The passing of the bill by the National Assembly was confirmed by Parliament spokesperson Moloto Mothapho.
“The NA passed the bill and sent it to the NCOP for consideration/concurrence. If the NCOP agrees with it and doesn’t make changes, it will be sent to the President for assent. If the NCOP recommends changes, then it will come back to the NA for the House to consider those changes,” Mothapho said.
The optics around cannabis in general have slowly progressed over the years, both from a societal point of view and in the eyes of the law.
CBD shops and medical cannabis dispensaries have been popping up more frequently across urbanised parts of the country.
The South African Police Service (SAPS), earlier this year, also announced that it issued a new directive in terms of private cannabis usage and arrests.
“In short, possession, use, and cultivation of cannabis by an adult for personal consumption, in private, is permitted. In contrast, dealing in cannabis is not permitted; therefore, commercialisation of cannabis is still not legal in South Africa,” police spokesperson Brigadier Athlende Mathe said.
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