The Health minister, Dr Jane Ruth Aceng, is stuck with 20 bids from companies and individuals competing to secure government clearance to grow and export marijuana for medical purposes.
Senior officials in the Ministry of Health told Daily Monitor that they are stuck with the bids because of lack of regulations governing the undertaking. The ministry is also overwhelmed by the number of ganja planters, both local and foreign, inquiring about the application process and follow-ups.
"Marijuana growing without proper control measures can be dangerous to our youthful population... . already it is the second highest cause for the Butabika [mental rehabilitation] hospital admissions majority of whom are youth. We can't just accept growing [of marijuana]," the State minister for Health, Ms Sarah Opendi warned.
"Why are we having this huge influx of people to our country wanting to grow it here and not any other East African country? We already have laws prohibiting its production without clearance from the ministry, but this law is already being abused. People are growing marijuana under whose authority?" she added.
Dr Aceng, at the weekend, confirmed the scramble for cannabis growing in Uganda and revealed how the number of interested companies has shot up from 14 to 20. She said most of the companies are local owners seeking to tap into the $5b cannabis industry.
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