Zimbabwe has opened the domestic market for CBD as a traditional herbal medicine, expanding on previous laws that allowed production only for export.
The Zimbabwe Medicines Control Authority (MCAZ) announced the change recently circular From Acting General Manager RT Rukwata addressed to licensed marijuana and cannabis producers, manufacturers, importers, exporters and pharmacists.
The authority is now accepting applications for approval to put hemp-based CBD products on the market, according to the circular. The authority said applicants must submit files that include product samples and certificates of analysis from an accredited laboratory, and pass MCAZ inspections of their sites to ensure compliance with good manufacturing practices.
Only medical cannabis and marijuana operators can open a legal cannabis business under the country’s cannabis laws.
registration
While MCAZ has a clearly defined registration process for traditional medicines, also known as herbal “complementary medicines”, the agency has found little success in registering domestic products, most of which are imported, according to the Report Published last year by the Center for Biotechnology Innovation and Regulatory Science (BIRS) (USA) of Purdue University. The report indicated that Zimbabwean producers contribute only 2% of the total domestic supply of these herbal products.
The BIRS paper warned that unregistered conventional medicines pose a significant public health threat in Zimbabwe due to insufficient regulations, and recommended greater cooperation between regulatory agencies to ensure consistent quality. Studies on native herbs are needed to help guide producers in preparing product registration files, and setting framework quality standards, BIRS said.
After establishing rules to guide the cannabis industry were Released in late 2020The Agricultural Marketing Authority began issuing licenses for farming and production, and the government began offering 99-year leases to state-owned farms last year.
The cultivation, processing, transportation and other aspects of the cannabis production chain are highly regulated. Only government-approved varieties of cannabis may be grown although special permission may be granted for non-certified varieties under a research license.
current strategy
The Zimbabwean government initially planned to run cannabis under state ownership, but later modified its strategy to encourage investment in the cannabis sectors. Regulations eased last year directed investors From Germany, Switzerland and Canada that obtained licenses for cultivation and processing.
The Ministry of Lands and the Zimbabwe Medicines Control Authority cooperate with the Zimbabwe Investment and Development Agency in managing the cannabis business, sharing power with respect to regulatory requirements. The government has set up the Zimbabwe Industrial Hemp Trust (ZIHT), a development initiative set up to help farmers start their cannabis operations, and search for new export markets for their cannabis output.
You see the Zimbabwean industrial government cannabis as an alternative The country’s prospects decline in tobacco, which accounts for nearly 20% of Zimbabwe’s exports. The downturn in the tobacco industry contributed to the stagnation that has plagued the country’s economy for nearly two decades despite the African nation’s vast wealth in natural resources.
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