Lack of legislation hindering cannabis research

The University of the West Indies (UWI) can only conduct a limited amount of research into medical cannabis due to the lack of necessary legislation.

Principal and Pro-Vice Chancellor of the UWI Cave Hill Campus, Professor Eudine Barriteau, asserted that while it is ready and able to conduct wider research into marijuana for medical purposes, limitations have been placed on how much could be done because Barbados’ laws have no provision for medical marijuana.

“Until the law changes, there are still some limitations in Barbados as it relates to the Cave Hill Campus conducting that research. For instance, right now we cannot
grow any marijuana or cannabis to see what strains would yield better and so we have to have the legislation in place,” she said.

Adamant the university will not break the law by growing cannabis to do hands-on research, Barriteau stressed that it is however in a position to provide advice to the government, as the current administration looks seriously at building a medical cannabis industry on the island.

“We think that as an industry and as a crop that the Caribbean has become very noted over the years for all kinds of reasons… (Therefore) as it relates to an economic sub-sector and as it relates to generating revenue and having medicinal properties, we would want to push that research and to assist the Government in doing that,” she outlined, while addressing members of the media on Thursday.

Barriteau also issued a warning while discussing the value of examining the economic worth of the industry to the region, saying the country could end up getting left behind as it did in the sugar industry.

“When it comes to medical marijuana and the medicinal aspects of it, we have been producing marijuana for a long time, we all know that, but we have not exploited it for medicine,” she contended.

Meanwhile, the Medicinal Cannabis Industry (2019) Bill is expected to again go before Parliament next week.
(JMB)