Can Lebanon Export Cannabis for Medicinal Purposes?

Haidar, Jamal Ibrahim and Zeaiter, Hussein and Darwich, Salem (2023): Can Lebanon Export Cannabis for Medicinal Purposes?

Abstract

The sale and consumption of cannabis are becoming more broadly accepted worldwide as research into its medicinal uses accelerates. Revenue in the global medical cannabis market is projected to reach 12.92 billion US dollars (USD) in 2023, and is expected to grow by 13.16% annually, resulting in a market volume of USD 23.97 billion by 2028. Moreover, Colombia, Costa Rica, Malaysia, Morocco, Thailand, Ukraine, the United States, and European Union countries have created regulatory frameworks for cannabis derivatives manufacturing and export and import licenses. As we previously argued, the goal of exporting cannabis from Lebanon for pharmaceutical processing and medicinal purposes should be welcome, despite many misunderstandings about Lebanon’s informal cannabis sector, as well as what would be required to establish a formal sector and ensure buy-in along the cannabis cultivation and export value chain. Among these challenges are cannabis importing country requirements and Lebanon’s ability to meet them.

• Item Type: MPRA Paper
• Language: English
• Keywords: cannabis; Lebanon; exports
• Subjects: F - International Economics > F0 - General; I - Health, Education, and Welfare > I0 - General; I - Health, Education, and Welfare > I0 - General > I00 - General

References

• Haidar, JI., Zeaiter, Hussein, and Darwich, S. (2023). On the Economic Potential of Cannabis Cultivation in Lebanon. The Policy Initiative.

• Lande, A. (1962). The single convention on narcotic drugs, 1961. International Organization, 16(4), 776-797.

• National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. (2017). The health effects of cannabis and cannabinoids: the current state of evidence and recommendations for research.