The very first Maltese Cannabis Clubs could open within the next six months.
Parliamentary Secretary for Reforms Rebecca Buttigieg told Lovin Malta that his office is currently working to ensure authorities have the necessary resources in place to meet the year-end timeline that was provided by Mariella Dimech, Chair of the Responsible Cannabis Use Authority (CURA) .
“Six months ago, Malta had the courage to face reality and pass historic reform for the responsible use of cannabis,” Mr Buttigieg said. “It was a huge step that many thought would never happen and yet here we are, the first EU Member State to take this step. »
“We had to put in place an authority to regulate it and we are now at a stage where the authority is put in place to effectively and responsibly enforce the law.”
Last December, Malta legalized the personal use of cannabis and allowed the creation of Cannabis Clubs, non-profit associations that can cultivate cannabis for their members. Cannabis associations will be regulated by the CURA and must meet the following criteria to obtain a license.
- Training certificate for all employees for: a) culture; b) storage; c) dispensation; d) delivery from point a to point b
- No connection with criminal organizations
- An insurance
- Residence in Malta
- Commit to providing all necessary data to the centralized data collection system
All applications will need to provide a clear action plan that includes plans for cultivation, storage, deliveries and dispensing.
Although the regulatory process has yet to begin, Rebecca Buttigieg urged people to take things step by step, noting that people can already grow and consume cannabis at home with peace of mind and have their records expunged. court for possession of cannabis.
