Malawi Parliament Adopts Hemp Cultivation Motion

How Malawi Economy Wins Through Industrial Hemp

Industrial Hemp Farm

In a historic way, the Malawi National Assembly on Thursday, 16^th June 2016, adopted a motion legalizing the cultivation of the Industrial Hemp for its economic and health benefits.

Ntchisi North Legislator, Boniface Kadzamira presented the motion which has been appearing in the Order Paper since in February this year but the motion failed to be debated.

 

Kadzamira

But Hon. Kadzamira came back with the Motion on Thursday, which reads “That considering the the enormous economic, medical and nutritional value Industrial Hemp has this House to resolves that Government should legalise the growing and usage of Industrial Hemp and that both at policy and legislation levels, industrial Hemp must be recognized appropriately as an agricultural cash crop for industrial purposes distinct from cannabis varieties”

Distinguishing it from locally known ‘Chamba’ Marijuana, Kadzamira said the plant is harmless and contains absolutely insignificant levels of THC (Tetrahydrocannabinol) which makes one feel high when smoking Marijuana.

Seconding the motion, Lilongwe City Centre legislator, Hon. David Bisnowaty said the plant has rich history of being used in countries like United States of America and Asia and emphasized that the plant can play significant role to Malawi economy once the cultivation and usage is legalized.

Throwing their weight, several cabinet Ministers also supported the cultivation and use of the Industrial Hemp.

Peter Kumpalume: Malawi Health Minister
supports hemp

Minister of Health, Peter Kumpalume while supporting the motion noted that countries that have made Industrial Hemp legal, have strict measures in place to regulate the varieties that people can grow and they register any farmer interested in cultivating the Hemp as well making sure that the hemp varieties are tested.

“I would only make this proposition that in as far as the content value of industrial hemp to any country is well documented we also need to controls in place to make sure that we regulate the varieties and register everybody who is growing and monitor them so we need those in place before we can fully grow this product” said Kumpalume

Invegrow's Mr. Nebert Nyirenda telling MPs
more about hemp (pic. by Invegrow)

Health products from hemp during
Invegrow exhibition 2015

Minister of Industry, Trade and Tourism, Joseph Mwanamvekha also said “It is true that in terms of value that we can accrue by growing and trading are quite huge compared to some of the crops that we are growing. And also, in terms of trade, as you are ware that we want to move from predominantly importing and consuming to an economy where we are producing and exporting.”

Chaponda: Agriculture Minister supports hemp

Then, Agriculture Minister, George Chaponda while supporting the motion, expressed fear that without giving the hemp a local name that distinguish it from Marijuana ‘Chamba’ the plant will bring confusion in terms of regulation and control of real ‘Chamba’ Marijuana. 

“They look the same.” He said, adding that with the similar name of Chamba, police officers will have difficulties and gave an example of two persons where one carry Industrial Hemp and another carry Marijuana but when police officer asks both of them what is in their possession they both reply ‘Chamba.’ 

“Then the police officer say, but this one is allowed [and not this Chamba]. So, how do you do? These are things that we need to look.” He noted while supporting the motion 

Hon Agnes Nyalonje: demands linguists
 to give hemp a local name

But Mzimba North Legislator, Agnes Nyalonje made a very significant point regarding the naming of the hemp. While calling for the country to change attitudes towards the research, technology and innovations she said as the trials will give evidence which will demonstrate whether the hemp has intoxicant or is a valuable economic crop, it is time to linguists must find a different local name that speaks about the Industrial Hemp.

“We should challenge our linguists to look at the language, because what is its name, in this case a lot is in the name. The fact that we don’t have the name, we are reduced to using the same name for two very different things. And that is why it creates in the minds of everybody, educated and uneducated all have the same fears.” She said 

Jumbe: bio-safety of hemp and research first before growing

However, Salima Central, legislator, who is also Chairperson for Agriculture in the House, Felix Jumbe suggested that at this stage Malawi should firstly proceed with appropriate bio-safety regulations and a proper research before looking at growing and usage.

Winding up the motion, Hon Kadzamira acknowledged the fears expressed by the members as genuine but stressed that this is where the country needs to have proper licensing for the would be growers and that linguists from Chancellor College will possibly come up with the local name of the plant in order to remove the confusion between the plant and ‘Chamba’, Marijuana.

The adoption of this motion will form a basis to change some sections of law that prohibits cultivation and use of hemp in Malawi.

Hemp trial site at Research Station in Lilongwe
(pic. by Invegrow)

pic. by Invegrow

Invegrow together with the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Water Development are currently carrying out research trials for Industrial Hemp at Chitedze Research Station in the capital city Lilongwe.

The first round of the results from the research were exciting as Malawi Bureau of Standards (MBS) found that the varieties that were used in the trial had very low THC and that the plant can be grown in the country.

Industrial Hemp Promising Future For Malawi

Malawi economy is poorly performing and is going through various socioeconomic challenges, key among them being the food insecurity crisis. But the main reasons making the economy continue to face challenges is the narrow export base and failure to find a better cash crop that can help bring forex into the country.

The country’s main forex earner, tobacco, is each year facing challenges that include the anti-smoking lobby campaigns by World Health Organisation (WHO) and deteriorating prices that farmers are offered in Auction Floors.

Adoption of this motion in the National Assembly comes at a time when Government is working out on crop diversification and is in search to identify and adopt new cash crops. The country understands that crop diversification and setting priority to crops that have high economic spillovers into higher earning value added products and which have a high potential for pro-poor growth can set the country on a path of economic structural transformation and industrialization. 

One crop which has more economic promises is Industrial Hemp. The hemp is an outstanding crop, real solution on the search for alternative cash crop to complement economic benefits that the struggling tobacco industry brings to the country. 

Unlike tobacco, where the market channel is largely from farmers to the buyer then the buyer export the material outside the country for manufacturing of products especially cigarettes, the hemp can bring more to the economy. It can lead to the establishment of manufacturing companies to manufacture astonishing number of products, bring jobs, bring real income to farmers, forex and tax as well as save environment.

T-Shirt made from hemp

Products from Hemp (pic. by Invegrow)

According to North American Industrial Hemp Council (NAIHC), products that can be made from hemp number over 25,000 and the products include; health foods, body care and cosmetic products, fabrics and textiles, auto parts, bio fuels and industrial oils, paper, furnishing and construction products.

Over 31 countries including Canada, Britain, France, Germany, Spain and China cultivate and process industrial hemp, it is grown for fiber and grain. The literature says Henry Ford even built a prototype car from biocomposite materials, using agricultural fiber such as hemp.

Because of importance, hemp seed, fiber and oil are still used in raw materials by major companies to make a wide variety of products and most hemp product manufacturers are importing hemp seed, oil and fiber from growers in Canada, Europe, and China.

Papers made from hemp

 

Legalizing the farming of hemp, the country will open up investments in manufacturing industry and make Malawi a producer and exporter of final products made from the hemp. Export of these locally made products will bring the country’s much needed forex and also solve the lamentable collection of tax and non-tax revenues that have also declined.

Again, coming in of the manufacturing industries will mean better jobs that will help to end the unemployment among the youth who form large part of the country’s population.

Not only that, farming of hemp will be a viable economic activity because of the more benefits a farmer will get after sales of the plant seeds and stalk. Such farming will reduce high poverty levels the country is facing and will be real income generating activity for rural area farmers.

And industrial hemp farming is even cheaper as compared to other crops because the hemp does not require chemicals and fertilizers that most farmers fail to buy. Additionally, as the country is still experiencing bad weather conditions like droughts, Hemp net environmental benefit is impressive. Among the more salient features, hemp grows in a variety of climates and soil types, is naturally resistant to most pests, and grows very tightly spaced allowing it to outcompete most weeds.

Concrete, ropes, boards and books products of hemp

Furthermore, the hemp will offer the persisting environmental degradation being caused by wanton cutting down of trees for timber and firewood. The hemp can be a replacement for timber as fibre boards for hemp are even much stronger and lighter.

Hope for Malawi economy is Agriculture which this year is enjoying a large share of national budget for 2016/17 financial year where up to 17 percent of total allocation has gone to this sector. This allocation proves Government stance that the sector will remain the backbone of the economy. But this also means that the country need to make right choice when prioritizing crops that have high economic value and the National Assembly has spoken.

Is Industrial Hemp, Marijuana ‘Chamba’?

 

Industrial hemp has been confused with a cannabis plant ‘Marijuana or Chamba’ probably because of an obvious reason that industrial hemp is new plant and many have never seen it fresh from the farm. 

With daily media reports in Malawi about people being arrested for possession of Marijuana which is locally grown, and lack of finding proper vernacular name for industrial hemp, many people are failing to find distinction between the hemp and Marijuana and are engulfed with fear that legalizing the hemp would result into Marijuana legalization.

Industrial Hemp is purely grown as an agricultural crop and widely recognized as one of the oldest domesticated crop for various industrial applications including, paper, textiles, and cordage. 

Although the hemp comes from varieties of cannabis sativa and of the same species as Marijuana [locally known Chamba], the hemp is genetically different and distinguished by its use and chemical makeup because it is the plant which is low in THC (Tetrahydrocannabinol) which is Marijuana’s primary psychoactive chemical that makes one high.

Industrial hemp farms are quite different
from Marijuana farms

Hemp fiber

Unlike Marijuana, the Industrial Hemp is a plant that is only used for industrial purposes and not for smoking as ‘Chamba’ is widely used. And it not true that legalizing industrial hemp will even encourage non-smokers to start smoking, but, it will be a crop that will make many Malawians start to earn good income from farming.

Distinguish hemp from Marijuana through proper awareness and sensitization, telling people importance of hemp as well as giving it a proper vernacular name, it will help many people to start to appreciate what Industrial Hemp is.