Cannabis was legalized for commercial and medicinal use in 2018 in South Africa when the country’s supreme court okayed the cultivation and exploitation of weed.

It was a joyous occasion but four years on, Black cultivators or processors say legalization is deceiving

“It’s more froth than beer. The court ruling, it was a cannabis victory that fell short of a total win,” Dikeledi Matla, chairperson of the Soweto Cannabis Alliance Forum, a local lobby for Black cannabis cultivators in South Africa, moans of a ‘legalization’ regime that he says places uphill burdens for Black cannabis players but favors well-heeled cannabis corporations coming from Europe into South Africa.“Despite the facade of legalization, there’s no declaratory order that legalizes all aspects of cannabis possession and use for individuals in South Africa.

We only have narrow legalization for wealthy corporations wanting to grow and export cannabis for medicinal use,” he adds. “That’s not enough – that restricts cannabis entrepreneurs of color.”South Africa is Africa’s leading cannabis cultivator and exporter and in...it sent a record.....toFor Shimmer Pasi, treasurer of the Sandton Cannabis Boutiques Forum, a lobby grouping of small street stores seeking licenses to openly sell cannabis in retail spaces in Johannesburg, South Africa’s commercial capital, it’s the South Africa government's own cannabis regulatory agency that’s locking black industry players outside.

The South Africa Health Products Regulatory Authority is accused of holding Stalinist powers over medical cannabis license applications.“The agency take up to 26 months to decide an applications, demands up to 150 pages in paperwork for one applications, charges nearly $3000 for an application and usually rejects applications. Few Black cannabis entrepreneurs can survive such a harsh licensing regime,” says Pasi.Stumbling blocks that are put in the path of Black cannabis players hopeful of entering a lucrative industry in South Africa are making players fearful that more liberal neighbor countries may steal the march from South Africa.

“You look at Zimbabwe – a neighbor country to us. Cannabis license costs just $500 for small scale growers and the rejection or approval of applications is instant, within a week or two. That’s a superb way to onboard small Black growers. We need same urgency in South Africa too,” Matla the Black cannabis lobby leader in South Africa says.