Member of Parliament (MP) for Nkhata Bay West Chrispine Mphande has asked government to legalise cultivation of local hemp commonly known as Chamba.
Speaking in Parliament on Friday, the lawmaker said the current greenhouse cannabis cultivation is very expensive and that local poor farmers cannot afford.
He said: “The seed itself is expensive, building over the green houses is expensive, but when you talk of traditional Chamba people are growing in the villages without application of fertilizer.”
Mphande said unlike cannabis, Chamba can be cultivated without much investment because of locally available resources.
“It is cheaper to produce but that will give people money, will give the government forex that is needed so that’s why I have asked the government to legalise our own Chamba,” he said.
Responding to plea, Minister of Agriculture Lobin Lowe said government has wholeheartedly welcomed the suggestion agreeing that local Chamba is the way to go in boosting the country’s economy.
“After passing that Act is now that we realise that the falling cannabis requires a lot of restrictions and for you to produce it is very expensive,” Lowe said.
“It’s like I was provoking the House because Cannabis Regulatory Authority is just very ready to come up with some amendments to make sure that ours which is called Malawi gold is legalised.”
Recently, appearing before the Parliamentary Committee on Agriculture and Food Security the Authority asked the Committee’s support on amendment of the Bill in order to legalise cultivation of Chamba.
