Pubdate: Sat, 07 Oct 2017
Source: Ottawa Citizen (CN ON)
Copyright: 2017 Postmedia Network Inc.
Contact:  http://www.ottawacitizen.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/326
Authors: Adam R. Houston and Rapelang Radebe
Page: D6

WHAT CANADA'S LEGAL WEED COULD MEAN TO LESOTHO

Legal market a boon to poor nation, write Adam R. Houston and Rapelang
Radebe.

By multiple measures, the Kingdom of Lesotho is one of the highest
countries in the world.

For one, the mountainous African nation never drops below 1,400
metres, meaning its lowermost point is at a higher elevation than that
of any other country.

For another, it has long depended heavily on the production of
cannabis; a report published by UNESCO at the turn of the millennium
found it was one of the country's three primary sources of hard
currency, alongside foreign aid and remittances from mines in
neighbouring South Africa.

Today, despite increased investment in sectors such as mining and
hydroelectricity, it remains a core cash crop. This is notwithstanding
the fact that cannabis - commonly known as dagga, or as matekoane in
the local Sesotho language - remains illegal.

Changes are afoot, however, that could potentially yield mutually
beneficial dividends for Canada, another country whose approach to
marijuana is rapidly evolving.

Lesotho updated its drug laws in 2008, in part "to ensure the
availability of certain drugs for exclusive medical, scientific and
related purposes."

And earlier this year, Lesotho issued what is reputedly Africa's first
licence for medical marijuana production. While the resulting licence
is restrictive, it marks a step toward capitalizing on an established
product in a country where more than 40 per cent of people live on
less than $1.25 a day.

The fact that its primary trading partner, South Africa, is also
loosening restrictions on the drug could hasten the process of reform;
after all, previous estimates have suggested Lesotho already accounts
for 70 per cent of the South African supply.

It is no surprise South Africa is the major customer; Lesotho is
completely surrounded by its neighbour, rising up like an island in
the South African sea. During the apartheid years, this isle of Black
rule attracted considerable foreign attention, including significant
Canadian aid. Today, however, Lesotho attracts little notice outside
the region, even during times of political turmoil.

Herein lies opportunity. Although Canadians may seem
uncharacteristically immodest when extolling the merits of "B.C. bud,"
a trip to the liquor store will quickly illustrate their cosmopolitan
tastes, extending beyond what's produced locally.

The two countries already have a bilateral Memorandum of Understanding
promoting Lesotho's access to the Canadian market as one of the
world's Least Developed Countries. In 2014, Canada imported $5.9
million worth of goods from Lesotho, the vast majority clothing and
textiles. By comparison, the year before, Canada imported $47.8
million worth of South African wine. If Canadians acquire a similar
taste for Lesotho dagga, it could be a massive boon to Lesotho's
economic development.

In Lesotho, cannabis is often a cash crop grown by subsistence farmers
alongside food crops produced for personal consumption; the resulting
revenue frequently provides for familial needs such as children's
school fees. Expanding the legal export market could support thousands
of farmers, allowing them to continue using their long-established
skills while helping bring them out of the shadows and ensuring
maximum returns to producers and their families rather than the
criminal networks that currently reap much of the profit upon resale
abroad.

While Canada itself is still working through the details of shifting
its own production to the legal market, its experiences, including the
occasional stumble, could offer guidance in the future on issues from
regulation to compliance with international treaties.

Similarly, Canada's private sector already has extensive experience
working with farmers in low-income countries to sell coffee, sugar and
other goods on mutually beneficial terms; fair-trade marijuana seems a
logical next step. It's true such plans may still be premature in
these earliest days of a legal market for Lesotho cannabis. It would
benefit both countries, however, for Canada to keep an eye on this
budding opportunity.

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Adam R. Houston is a PhD Candidate in the Faculty of Law at the 
University of Ottawa working at the intersection of law and health. 
Rapelang Radebe is a Lesotho correspondent for SABC News.