Paper short abstract:

This paper shows how the recent concern with drugs in Africa has impacted on long-established debates about cannabis in Africa and argues that the growing international attention has strengthened repressive state responses, in spite of a tendency to liberalise cannabis policies in major donor countries.

Paper long abstract:

Cannabis is undoubtedly Africa's most important illegal drug. There is no other drug that is so widely consumed, traded and cultivated, as well as targeted by state authorities. Cannabis farming and trade generate significant numbers of livelihoods in various African countries, while its use is firmly embedded in many subcultures and mainstream cultures of consumption across the continent. Indeed, it has a long history of use on the continent. It is a much discussed and controversial substance too, and policy makers frequently condemn it as a 'problem drug' that causes insanity, instability and widespread social problems.

Despite its importance, cannabis has been largely ignored in recent discussions on Africa's strengthened position in the drug trade, as it is sidelined by the focus on the continent as a transshipment point for cocaine and heroin, and it is frequently conflated with dangerous drugs more generally. By drawing on evidence from Nigeria, Kenya and southern Africa, this paper shows how the recent concern with drugs in Africa has impacted on long-established African debates about cannabis and argues that the growing international attention has strengthened repressive state responses, in spite of a tendency to liberalise cannabis policies in major donor countries.