The Cannabis for Private Purposes Act gives the green light to adults wanting to cultivate, possess and consume the herb for their private use. It also sees the automatic expungement of criminal records for related offences.

Cannabis users in South Africa can finally breathe easier: the President has signed the Cannabis for Private Purposes Act (CFPPA) into law, which means adults who use, consume or possess cannabis for their personal consumption are no longer at risk of prosecution.

The act specifically deals with private use and allows those with previous convictions unrelated to drug dealing -- in South Africa and the former homelands pre-1993 -- to have their criminal records expunged automatically.

Those convicted on the basis of the presumption of dealing in cannabis can also apply to have their criminal records expunged.

Cannabis is now defined as the flowering or fruiting tops of the plant, not the stems, seeds, branches or other biomaterial, which are designated as "hemp".

Last week, in announcing the enactment of the law, the Presidency noted that cannabis has been removed from the Drugs and Drug Trafficking Act.

"This will further enable amendment of the Schedules to the Medicines and Related Substances Act and provide for targeted regulatory reform of the Plant Breeders Rights Act and the Plant Improvement Act, as well as other pieces of legislation that require amendment to allow for the industrialisation of the cannabis sector."

The...