The legal cannabis industry in Africa could be worth more than $US 7.1 billion annually by 2023, according to market intelligence and strategic consultancy firm Prohibition Partners.
In a press statement released on Thursday, the company said that its research, published in The African Cannabis Report, indicated that the industry could grow into billions of dollars if legislation was introduced in a number of the continent's major markets.
The report is the first detailed document on the legal cannabis industry in Africa, according to Prohibition Partners.
It includes detailed market value forecasts, regulatory timeline analysis, consumption data and healthcare analyses for nine key markets, including Lesotho, South Africa and Zimbabwe.
Key findings of the report include:
The region has a long history of cannabis cultivation and many farmers have turned to illegal cannabis cultivation as the only means of subsistence since the decline in demand for other crops such as tobacco.
South Africa and Nigeria potentially represent the region's two largest value medicinal cannabis markets going forward, worth US$667m to SA and US$75m to Nigeria by 2023.
Despite moves to legalise in several key markets, cannabis remains illegal across vast swathes of the continent as the great majority of African governments have yet to follow the trend of legalisation that is sweeping across Europe, North America and Latin America.
It is currently estimated that 38,000 tonnes of illegal cannabis is produced across Africa each year.
You can download the full African Cannabis Report by visiting:
http://prohibitionpartners.com/reports/
- African News Agency (ANA)
