The legalisation of cannabis farming in Malawi inspired many farmers to start growing the plant with hopes of high returns. But that hope has dimmed, as farmers like Ethel have still not been able to grow a single cannabis plant after years of waiting.
BBC News, Lilongwe
Ms Chilembwe, who has been farming tobacco in Kasungu in the west of the country for the last seven years, also scented an opportunity to replace her shrinking returns.The United States Cannabis Association-Malawi , a private Malawian company, has been one of those at the centre of this failure, yet it still hopes that things will work out.
Having already paid $1,500 to acquire the licence, Ms Chilembwe says the group paid thousands more dollars to USCA for registration, seeds and training in 2021."I think the problem lies with [USCA], who cannot deliver what they promised, and then the government itself which does not seem willing to help usThe land where she hoped to set up greenhouses has remained bare, something she says has led to a huge loss to her family.
"We had hope, [that] if we borrowed the money from the bank we knew that we would pay it back," adds the disgruntled former parliamentarian.USCA is one of the four private entities licensed by the government to produce cannabis in Malawi. The head of CRA says the money that was raised from the farmers was spent on running USCA's office operations, and this left them with no funds to carry out their plans.
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