The Bahamian government is close to completing a bill enabling nationwide legalization of medical cannabis and industrial hemp.
Prime Minister Hubert Minnis said last week that the government was finalizing legislation to bring medical cannabis before parliament. His remarks came at the opening of the Hope Town Shoreline Stabilization Project and were published on the prime minister's official Facebook page.
The medical cannabis bill has strong support in the island nation, including from the Caribbean Association of Pharmacists. Its president, Dr. Marvin Smith, said, “We now consider cannabis a medicine. All the scientific evidence going back decades already proves this.”
In his previous remarks in October 2020, Minnis said, “Our cannabis laws are outdated and need to change. The global legal cannabis market is worth billions of dollars, with significant growth projected in coming years.” No new government announcement on cannabis law had followed until now. The Bahamas National Cannabis Commission apparently plans to submit its final report on establishing the industry within weeks.
The Bahamas, north of Cuba, lies in the Lucayan Archipelago of the Atlantic West Indies. Home to approximately 389,000 people, it comprises more than 700 islands and islets.
Although recreational cannabis legalization has little chance in the Bahamas, the committee recommended exemptions for hemp-derived CBD products and trade with minimal restrictions.
