Good afternoon. Calls by President Filipe Nyusi to consider the legalisation of cannabis (see below) are somewhat different to the debates on the subject that take place in Europe and America: the state's motivation is economic rather than social. As well as its use as a recreational drug, the cannabis plant is of course used to produce hemp for industrial purposes, such as in textiles, and medicines. Even countries which ban the recreational use of cannabis can produce and export large amounts for these purposes. Mozambique currently produces and (illegally) exports significant amounts of cannabis. If growing cannabis for industrial and medicinal use were legalised, production could increase and the state could earn money from licences and taxation.

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