Albanian Prime Minister Discusses Medical Cannabis

Albania is home to one of the most popular cannabis smuggling routes on earth and is also home to a significant amount of unregulated cannabis cultivation.

How much cannabis is actually cultivated and/or smuggled through Albania in a year is anyone’s guess, however, it’s a safe bet that the number is measured in tons instead of kilos.

Authorities in Albania have cracked down hard on the illegal cannabis trade in recent years, yet, the industry continues to thrive within Albania’s borders and domestically cultivated cannabis is transported and sold throughout Europe.

Cannabis activists in Europe have tried very hard to reform Albania’s cannabis laws for many years. Unfortunately, even medical cannabis reform has remained elusive, although that may be changing soon. Per Albanian Daily News:

Prime Minister Edi Rama has reopened the topic of legalization of the medical cannabis, during a meeting with several citizens within the initiative of the National Counselling. The head of government showed how the cutlivation of medical cannabis would work if it were legalized.

According to Rama, the whole process would be strictly monitored, and cannabis would be used mainly for exports.

Prime Minister Rama was very clear that cannabis would be tightly controlled, and provided no timeline for any action on implementing a regulated medical cannabis program. Until any specifics surface, cannabis advocates should temper expectations.

Based on the Prime Minister’s comments, there doesn’t appear to be a desire to focus on helping suffering patients in Albania for the time being, which is truly unfortunate.

Setting up an industry geared only towards profiting from exports is helpful economically, however, it’s far from a compassionate-focused approach.