Ministers weigh shifting sacramental ganja governance to culture ministry

Officials have stepped up talks on how Jamaica governs cannabis used for religious purposes under what the law describes as the sacramental cannabis framework. The aim is to tighten oversight, defend genuine religious freedoms, and keep the country’s wider regulated cannabis sector credible.

One option under review would place day-to-day control of the religious cannabis regime with the Ministry of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport. That proposal came up during a recent senior ministerial meeting at the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs. Policymakers are weighing the move because the framework is tied closely to the island’s faith traditions and cultural identity.

Minister of State in the Ministry of Industry, Investment and Commerce, Hon. Delano Seiveright, told JIS News that the exercise is part of wider work to make policy clearer and improve how the agencies involved work together. “The Government remains committed to protecting legitimate religious rights, while ensuring that the framework is properly governed, clearly understood and not exploited for activities outside of the law,” he said.

The session built on advice from the Cannabis Industry Development Taskforce, which Mr. Seiveright chairs. That body had flagged gaps in policy direction and weak coordination in running the religious cannabis system. Mr. Seiveright said the review also offered a chance to keep the arrangement fair for all sides.

Talks focused on how religious groups qualify for recognition, who supervises them, limits on how much ganja may be grown or held, rules for moving it, which lands and worship spaces may be approved, enforcement steps, and how to separate lawful sacramental use from commercial cannabis business.

“We must continue to uphold the protections provided under the Dangerous Drugs Act while addressing operational challenges, strengthening compliance and ensuring that legitimate religious use is clearly distinguished from commercial cannabis activities,” Mr. Seiveright said.

Participants also looked at how the Dangerous Drugs (Designation of Land for Cultivation of Ganja for Sacramental Purposes) (Amendment) Order, 2023, is working in practice. That order permits recognised Rastafarian bodies and named individuals to grow ganja for genuine religious reasons on approved plots, under set conditions and government monitoring.

Those present included Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, Hon. Delroy Chuck; Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, Hon. Olivia “Babsy” Grange; Minister of State in the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, Hon. Marisa Dalrymple-Philibert; Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Industry, Investment and Commerce, Sancia Bennett Templer; and senior officials from the ministries named.

Mr. Seiveright said “further consultations will continue as the Government works to modernise the governance of Jamaica’s religious cannabis framework while protecting religious observance, strengthening regulatory certainty and maintaining public confidence in the country’s cannabis regime”.