Cannabis in Ghana is illegal without license from the
Minister of Health
A health minister is the member of a country's government typically responsible for protecting and promoting public health and providing welfare spending and other social security services.
Some governments have separate ministers for mental heal ...
, but the nation is, along with
Nigeria
Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...
, among the top illicit cannabis-producing countries of
West Africa
West Africa, also known as Western Africa, is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations geoscheme for Africa#Western Africa, United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Gha ...
.
Cannabis
''Cannabis'' () is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cannabaceae that is widely accepted as being indigenous to and originating from the continent of Asia. However, the number of species is disputed, with as many as three species be ...
in
Ghana
Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...
is known as weed
or devil's tobacco (''obonsam tawa'').
History
There are two main theories as to how cannabis came to Ghana:
* Brought there by troops returning from India and Burma after
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
* Spread by sailors coming down the coast, most likely from Sierra Leone
The first report of illegal
cannabis cultivation
Cultivation of cannabis is the production of cannabis infructescences ("buds" or "leaves"). Cultivation techniques for other purposes (such as hemp production) differ.
In the United States, all cannabis products in a regulated market must be ...
in Ghana occurred in 1960.
In July 2023, the first relaxations of hemp policy in Ghana became apparent. The government announced its intention to permit both industrial and medical usage in the future. Ghana is one of the first countries in Africa to follow the global trend of hemp liberalization. Additionally, voices advocating for swift further liberalization are growing louder, emphasizing the benefits and additional revenue from tourism.
Culture
Cannabis remains the most popular illegal drug in Ghana.
Ghana is reported as the highest cannabis-using nation in Africa, and third in the world.
In the 1990s, cannabis which had previously been an urban phenomenon in bars and nightclubs, had spread to rural areas as well.
Cannabis was associated with youth involved in
Rastafari
Rastafari is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic religion that developed in Jamaica during the 1930s. It is classified as both a new religious movement and a social movement by Religious studies, scholars of religion. There is no central authori ...
culture, and with students who believed cannabis use would improve their ability to study.
Economy
Cannabis from Ghana is transported to other countries in western Africa, as well as to Europe.
See also
*
Opioid addiction in Ghana
References
{{Cannabis by country
Ghana
Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...
Drugs in Ghana