Hosted by Dr Blessed Okole, CSIR Research Group leader: Agro-processing

Over 50 countries around the world have legalised some form of cannabis for medicinal use and only three of these are from Africa. For centuries, cannabis has been widely grown in Africa and the UN estimates that more than 38 000 tonnes of cannabis are produced in Africa each year. Governments in many African countries are looking to capitalise on the opportunities available from the legalisation of cannabis and the international demand for Africa’s legally produced cannabis.

This panel will discuss the opportunities and challenges for the cannabis industry and what national strategies are in place to support the industry. The panel will discuss the full value chain from supply to product development and assess some of the infrastructure in place to support industrialisation of cannabis in South Africa, including the legal framework in place to support the industrialisation of cannabis.

Dr Blessed Okole, CSIR Research Group Leader: Agro-processing; Dr Hlupheka Chabalala, National Director of the Indigenous Knowledge-Based Technology Innovation Unit of the Department of Science and Innovation; Cian McClelland, Chief Executive Officer of Druids Garden; Prof. Motlalepula G Matsabisa, Professor of Pharmacology and Director: Research and Teaching, Department of Pharmacology, School of Clinical Medicine, University of the Free-State; Vukile Nkabinde, Director: National Small Enterprise Development Masterplan, Department of Small Business Development; Ms Daphney Mokgadi Fafudi, Medicine Control Officer, South African Health Products Regulatory Authority; Mr Thabo Ramashala, Director: Plant Production, Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development