Cannabis in Lebanon

Cannabis in Lebanon is illegal. However, large amounts are grown within the country, and personal use as long as not in public is not a major issue. Legalization efforts are underway, though formal action has not yet been taken . The Parliament speaker stated, "The Lebanese Parliament is preparing to study and adopt the legislation necessary to legislate the cultivation of cannabis and its manufacture for medical uses in the manner of many European countries and some US states." This announcement comes after the release of a five-year study by McKinsey & Company to boost economic development. With the world's third highest debt, proponents for legalization argue that fostering the marijuana industry could help to reform the country's economy Some growers that oppose the reform, such as Abu Jafaar of the Bekka Valley (Lebanon's most well known growing area), fear that government intervention will take revenue away from them and into the hands of politicians.

Prohibition

The production of hashish was prohibited in Lebanon in 1926, during the era of the French Mandate for Syria and the Lebanon. The cultivation of cannabis itself was forbidden in 1992, under pressure from the United States.

Production

By 2001 poverty had pressed many farmers to return to growing cannabis under the protection of Hezbollah. By 2002, production had reached 37,000 acres: double what it was the year prior.