The Botswana Investment and Trade Centre has hosted a workshop on industrial hemp and medicinal cannabis, drawing together the National Agricultural Research and Development Institute (NARDI), Botswana University of Agriculture and Natural Resources (BUAN) and the National Cannabis Control Authority to examine the sector’s commercial prospects.
At the centre of the discussions was Hemp Innovations Botswana, a BITC-accredited company licensed to conduct a pilot cultivation and processing project in partnership with NARDI. The pilot aims to build practical insights into what it takes to establish and sustain the industry at scale, with findings expected to guide the sector’s long-term development.
Discussions ranged across Hemp Innovations, Botswana’s implementation plan, the new legislative framework governing the industry, export market opportunities and the topical issues reshaping the global industrial hemp and medicinal cannabis landscape. Recommendations for the sector’s future direction were also tabled.
The engagement represents a deliberate step by Botswana into an industry that has delivered significant economic returns in other jurisdictions. As licensing, institutional partnerships, and regulatory infrastructure begin to align, the pilot will be closely watched as the most definitive test yet of whether Botswana’s cannabis economy can transition from policy intent to commercial reality.
