Rastafari Council Of Ghana Congratulates Parliament On Passage Of NACOC Bill

Following the passage of the NACOC Bill in Ghana giving the Minister of Interior the power to issue licenses for the cultivation of cannabis for industrial and medicinal purposes, the Advocacy Commission of the Rastafari Council, Ghana has issued a statement congratulating Parliament. In a press statement, Chairman of the Commission, Khex Pongo, thanked Parliament for this ‘landmark’ legislation and prayed the legislative body and the Minister in charge to follow it up with ensuring that licenses are issued to local farmers in order to ensure that a majority of the profits accrued will be retained in the country. Below is the press statement issued by the Commission.

RASTAFARI COUNCIL OF GHANA

Rastafari Council of Ghana

Press Release

The Advocacy Commission of the Rastafari Council of Ghana (RCG) wishes to express its gratitude to Parliament and all stakeholders for successfully passing the Narcotics Bill for the industrial cultivation of hemp. The bill recognizes the medicinal value of hemp and its economic benefits in the area of job creation. According to experts if managed well the cannabis industry in Ghana can employ thousands of youth and can bring in a lot of needed revenue to the country.

However the RASTAFARI COUNCIL, GHANA wishes to bring to the attention of those responsible in framing the Legislative Instrument (LI) to give priority to the licensing of local farmers who have suffered persecution over the years, instead of making it very difficult for them to acquire licenses.

The commission also recommends that any international investors should rather be permitted to invest in value addition like granting them permission to create factories and processing plants to buy the raw materials from local out-growers.
This in our humble view will ensure that a substantial portion of the profits made in this fledgling industry will be retained in the country and will benefit both the government and by extension, not just the farmers but also the wider community.

Thank you for your attention and we hope to make further input as the need arises.

Khex Pongo
Chairman

[+233 246 866 519]