A greenhouse at the cannabis company Phytocann near Ollon in western Switzerland. The Swiss government has approved plans to legalize the sale and consumption of cannabis in Zurich as part of a trial to evaluate economic and health advantages.
Fabrice Coffrini | afp | Getty Images
The Swiss government has approved plans to legalize the sale and consumption of marijuana in Zurich attempt to evaluate the social and economic advantages of drug regulation.
From this summer, a test group of 2,100 Zurich residents will have the ability to purchase regulated doses of the drug for private use at pharmacies, special clinics and social clubs throughout the city.
Participants are expected to reply a six-monthly questionnaire about their consumption habits and health effects as part of the study, which is being conducted in collaboration with the University of Zurich.
The trial ultimately goals to find out the conditions under which the legalization of weed in Switzerland is perhaps compatible with “promoting the health and safety of the individual and society,” the study’s leaders said. Evidence from the trial is to be published repeatedly from next 12 months.
The purpose is to get solid real-world evidence that serves the recent politicians [national] cannabis regulation,
Barbara Buri
project manager at the Zurich Municipal Public Health Service
“It’s about getting solid evidence from the real world to drive recent policy making [national] cannabis laws,” said Barbara Burri, project manager at Zurich’s municipal health department.
The move comes as other parts of Europe are rethinking their marijuana laws in response to wider drug policy changes around the world.
Germany, Europe’s largest economy, is anticipated to introduce a law in the coming weeks to permit the consumption and sale of cannabis – a move that might make it the first country in the EU to permit nationwide business sales.
Neighboring Luxembourg and Czech Republic have already proposed plans to legalize cannabis for adult use, while in Austria, Italy and Spain, personal possession of small amounts of the drug isn’t any longer a criminal offence.
Maltathe smallest EU member state, in 2021 it became the first country in the bloc to legalize possession of the drug for private use and to permit private “cannabis clubs” where members can grow and share the drug.
Elsewhere, Canada, Uruguay and most recently Thailand have taken steps to legalize the drug over the past decade.
Residents of Zurich who’re involved in participating in the study are invited registerprovided they’re adult lively cannabis users, don’t have any co-morbidities and usually are not currently employed as skilled drivers.
About a third of adults in Switzerland have tried marijuana, in keeping with public health research. In Zurich – the country’s most populous city with over 420,000 inhabitants – an estimated 13,000 inhabitants are regular users.
Further studies with public and university sponsors in the cities of Basel, Bern, Lausanne, Geneva, Biel, Thun, Olten and Winterthur are also planned in the coming months.