In 2020, Ghana’s Parliament passed the Narcotics Control Commission Act into law, paving the way for the use of cannabis and hemp for industrial, medical and research purposes. Within it, the Narcotics Control Board was transformed into the Narcotics Control Commission (NACOC) and given a new mandate which, alongside traditional drug control responsibilities, includes issuing licenses for cannabis cultivation.
While there have been past issues with establishing a legal cannabis industry, it should be well on the way to implementation. Now, over five years since the Act’s assent, NACOC has still not issued any cannabis licenses, preventing any legal cultivation to actually take place. Cannabis cultivation, for any legal purpose, remains de facto criminalised.
In August of this year, the Director-General of NACOC, Brigadier General Maxwell Mantey, met with the Moroccan Ambassador to Ghana to get more information on how to cultivate, market and regulate cannabis since Morocco is amongst a handful of countries on the African continent that are into cannabis and hemp production.
Future of cannabis and hemp usage in Ghana
As it stands, Ghanaian hemp and medical cannabis entrepreneurs and businesses remain in limbo, awaiting clarity from Parliament on details about when licenses’ costs, timeframes and requirements.
Some have voiced doubts about how accessible licenses will be. According to Nana Kwaku Agyemang, the President of Hempire Association of Ghana (HAG), sky-high fees and other high barriers to participate in the market are expected.
“The licensing fees being proposed by NACOC are outrageous: US$45,000 per hectare for cultivating cannabis, and US$2 per kilometre for transporting it to any place,” Agyemang told TalkingDrugs in an interview.
“No one was ever consulted about the licensing fees, we rejected it before when we heard the price… it will mostly benefit a few who have the financial muscle to pay for the fees,” added Agyemang.
Of the handful of African countries that have legalised the cultivation and marketing of cannabis and hemp, small scale farmers in Morocco are the ones that are benefiting from the new regulations as most of the African countries that have legalised cannabis tend to have intense prerequisites in order to acquire a hemp or cannabis license which often favors non-locals who have the resources to meet them.
Regulation for legal cannabis cultivation remains stalled if licensing of production, supply and distribution is not resolved.
Ghana’s market potential
There is some urgency for Ghana to clarify how it will regulate cannabis in the future. Local use appears to be high: in 2006, around 21.5% of the population was estimated to consume cannabis. While there have been no more recent updates to this figure, data 2024 underscore that around 17% of young Ghanaians use cannabis, with unemployment and lack of professional and educational opportunities considered a key driver of use. A controlled cannabis industry may help fund employment and education opportunities around the industry.
Certain areas of Ghana, like the southeastern Volta region, are known for extensive cannabis cultivation. There, reports have emerged of children working on illegal cannabis plantation. These plantations have grown in size across Volta, with community leaders believing that illegal growers have misinterpreted the new Narcotics Act as approval of recreational cannabis cultivation. NACOC condemned child labour linked to cannabis work in July, asking for patience while Parliament determines licensing fees and processes. Clear legislation and appropriate enforcement is needed to avoid these abuses.
Cannabis’ promises
Patience is running thin for cannabis due to its economic potential. According to the Chamber of Cannabis Industry‘s CEO, Mark Darko, Ghanaian cannabis could be a multibillion dollar industry that may change the country’s economic trajectory, particularly at a time when more than 20% of the population is experiencing poverty.
In an interview with TalkingDrugs, Darko said that the cannabis industry may drive green industrialisation, youth employment, and sustainable development.
“The global cannabis and hemp market is projected to exceed US$60 billion by 2030, and Ghana could easily position itself as a leading exporter within the Economic Community of West African States’ (ECOWAS) subregion, creating thousands of direct and indirect jobs from cultivation and processing to research, logistics, and retail,” Darko told TalkingDrugs.
Darko highlighted that a properly regulated cannabis industry could generate new income streams for farmers, especially in rural communities dependent on cash crops.
“The government is losing significant potential tax revenue, foreign exchange inflows, and investment capital that could support local development projects. One hectare of hemp can generate up to five times the revenue of maize or cocoa, depending on their value chain,” he added.
While still stalled, the economic promises of cannabis for Ghana are strong, underscoring the need for a proper licensing and regulatory system that can blossom the industry into a profitable sector for all.
Government’s intent on cannabis
While Ghana’s government continues to hesitate on clarifying the future of cannabis, there is caution
According to Collins Hlordo-banques from Ghana Hemp Solutions, a cannabis and hemp advocacy organisation, the Ghanaian government is being overly cautious with cannabis reform as public perceptions of the drug remain negative. Government bodies like Ghana’s Mental Health Authority continue to transmit anti-regulation messages on cannabis which don’t seem aligned with changing legislation.
“Political hesitation and bureaucracy continue to drag the process. While diplomatic engagements such as NACOC’s meeting with the Moroccan Ambassador signal intent, full implementation remains slow because the delay is costing Ghana heavily. I personally missed the chance to bring in a US$80,000 hemp processing plant that could have employed 300 to 500 people. That’s not just a lost business, that’s lost national potential,” said Hlordo-banques.
Darko also added that cannabis reform remains a sensitive topic in Ghana; policymakers will take their time to educate the public and reassure stakeholders that this is a medicinal and industrial reform, not an endorsement of recreational abuse.
“The government is finalising the administrative framework and fees under the new NACOC regulations to ensure proper oversight and prevent abuse. We anticipate that by the end of this year or early next year, the framework for issuing licenses for medicinal and industrial hemp use will be fully operational, paving way for commercial cultivation under Ghana’s Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) standards,” said Darko.
Further delays to getting the industry going will not only cause business delays, it may erode public confidence on the value of cannabis law reform. Establishing a licensing process that allows for local participation and transitions illegal cultivators into the local industry will be crucial to elevate all, not just the few.
