Morocco Denies Claims of Widespread Illegal Cannabis Cultivation

According to the testimony collected by La Dernière Heure on November 25, François recounted having seen "cultivated to the horizon" fields of kif, on "thousands of hectares", but "no intervention" from a police and gendarmerie service "throughout the duration of my stays on site". This leads him to conclude that Morocco turns a blind eye to 51,920 hectares of illegal cannabis crops.

In 2021, Morocco, the world’s largest producer of cannabis according to the UN, adopted a law on the cultivation and use of cannabis for medical purposes, in order to fight drug trafficking in the Rif and boost the economic development of this poor region located in the northeast of the kingdom. The legal cultivation of cannabis has therefore been authorized in three rural provinces: Al Hoceima, Chefchaouen and Taounate. The National Agency for the Regulation of Cannabis-Related Activities (ANRAC) has also been created.

206 production cooperatives already grouping 3,336 approved farmers have been mobilized. From 300 hectares in 2022, the sown areas have reached 3,080 hectares this year. Insignificant areas compared to those dedicated to the illegal cultivation of cannabis. According to the Moroccan investigative journalist Hicham Mansouri, the illegal hashish trafficking in Morocco would concern more than 55,000 hectares and 140,000 cannabis growers, reported Courrier International last October.

In Brussels, Ambassador Mohammed Ameur confirms the observation made by François. "It takes time," he tells La Dernière Heure. "We cannot change the mentalities of a region where the cultivation of kif dates back to the dawn of time in a single day. But since 2021 there has been a real dynamic that is being put in place. We are at the beginning of the process. You will see that this new strategy that we have in the field of legal cannabis cultivation will eventually bear fruit."

The Moroccan diplomat assures that Morocco has not given up. "Add that our services are sparing no effort to dismantle the networks and seize shipments. Morocco and Belgium are cooperating exemplarily in the fight against drug trafficking, mobilizing and pooling their efforts to prosecute and convict those involved in the trafficking," he added.