NCSA statement on the reclassification of marijuana

The vote by the Commission for Narcotic Drugs, which is based in Vienna and includes 53 member
states, considered a series of recommendations from the World Health Organization on
reclassifying cannabis and its derivatives. But attention centred on a critical recommendation to
remove cannabis from Schedule IV of the 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs — where
the UN previously was listed cannabis alongside dangerous and highly addictive opioids like
heroin.

In Barbados, the National Council on Substance Abuse (NCSA) is the leading agency for the
prevention of the use and abuse of legal and illegal drugs. It plays a critical role as an adviser on
illicit drugs to the Minister of Home Affairs and Attorney General. The views of the NCSA on the
use of marijuana in Barbados are, therefore, helpful to policy, programming and future research
on marijuana.

In this regard, the NCSA is of the view that the vote to reclassify cannabis will have implications
for programming and policy in Barbados. First, though the reclassification of cannabis will have
no immediate impact on loosening international controls, Barbados will still have jurisdiction over
how to classify cannabis. Despite the ability of Barbados to operate independently of the UN
convention, it coexists within a larger global body that cooperates to reduce problems associated
with the use and abuse of legal and illegal drugs. Being part of a worldwide response to the use
and misuse of legal and illicit drugs, therefore, places Barbados on course for adopting policies
that are supportive of UN conventions.

The UN reclassification of cannabis may also intensify policy directives towards medicinal
marijuana. Including medical research and the legalization and decriminalization of marijuana. In
regards to medical research, smoking marijuana had improved the condition of those suffering
from chronic pain and a variety of illnesses when standard treatments did not work. Despite these
gains, the persistent smoking of marijuana has led to adverse health consequences, including
psychiatric symptoms and cognitive alterations depending on the dose, frequency, and earliness of
use. For example, adolescents who use marijuana heavily reported learning and working memory
impairments up to six weeks’ post-cessation.

Overall, the NCSA recognizes the contribution of marijuana to the field of medicine. However,
the evidence indicates that policymakers and drug prevention practitioners should give equal
attention to the harms related to the abuse of marijuana. Surveys on drug prevalence in Barbados show that marijuana is the second most commonly used substance (second only to alcohol) and is
the most popular illegal drug (NCSA, 2007, 2013, 2015).

The NCSA, therefore, proposes that in the context of the UN reclassification of marijuana, the
government of Barbados should also expand policy initiatives on reducing the harms related to the
abuse of marijuana to include an emphasis on the provision of increased resources for the
prevention and treatment of persons who are impacted by the misuse of substances