Cannabis is now sold in pharmacies in South Africa not to be confused with the CBD . The initiative aims to better regulate the use of this herb. In many ways, a promising industry is still marginalized despite the decriminalization of its use since 2018.

The brand called THC Africa is placed under the authority of pharmacist Kyle Brocklebank, in the province of Gauteng in the north of the country. The principle is, as in all pharmacies, to offer the well-known plant to the public when it is presented on prescription. Because cannabis can be a drug, its medicinal uses in treating pain in others are now widely recognized despite some objections.

It was in September 2018 that the Constitutional Court of South Africa struck down the personal use of cannabis. It was the culmination of a long battle with sometimes political repercussions, started by Myrte Clarke and Julian Stobbs, a couple campaigning for the lifting of restrictions around hemp. This decision had contributed to stimulating the know-how of the players in the dagga – name given locally to cannabis – in particular through a fair in Pretoria, a first in Africa.

But despite this enthusiasm reinforced by the liberalization of the cultivation and marketing of the plant for medicinal purposes, a persistent legal void still leaves little room for the influence of an influential sector whose potential is estimated at more than 6,3 .2023 billion dollars in Africa by XNUMX, according to the organization Prohibition Partners.

There is indeed an ambiguity on the issue in South Africa. With a production of around 2 tons per year, according to a United Nations report published by Prohibition Partners, the country has seen the blossoming in recent years of an entire industry dedicated to cannabis around private clubs, shops and even clinics. But in the absence of a legal framework, the actors were still the subject of police surprise. Furthermore, obtaining a license to operate, even for therapeutic purposes, from a national health regulator remains a costly and time-consuming task.

Some analysts believe that the country would benefit from a better organization of the sector to take advantage of the opportunities of this new green gold, in particular as an export product. And more so because the Johannesburg Stock Exchange is home to some of the leading pharmaceutical companies in the field. Another stimulus for the sector: the proximity to neighboring Lesotho, a pioneer in the elimination of weeding in Africa.

THC Africa plans to expand its pharmacies to other African countries like Zimbabwe, Kenya and Nigeria.