Montego Bay Convention Centre to host CanEx Ja

JAMAICA’S FIRST cannabis seminar, dedicated to shaping the future of the local cannabis market, is set to be held at the Montego Bay Conference Centre. Now is an opportune time as amended legislation has transformed the legal global cannabis market into a burgeoning one and is having an impact on the local market as well.

CanEx Jamaica is a unique one-day conference that will focus on the North American, Latin American, and Caribbean cannabis landscape with key insight for those looking to invest in and be an integral part of the burgeoning market. The seminar will host an international speaker line-up and showcase state-of-the-art grow facilities, technology, branding, and political advocacy measures as well as high-level content on the latest advances in the regulatory, legal, investment, and product development landscape. Through a distinguished panel of experienced and innovative experts shaping the future of the global cannabis market, the seminar will give first-hand insight into the most cutting-edge market innovations and technologies.

The convention centre is happy to be hosting such an event, which is sure to get significant international support, stated the facility’s general manager, Dittie Guise.

“We at the Montego Bay Convention Centre are extremely pleased to be the host venue for CanEx Jamaica. A core part of our platform is the development of Jamaica through the meetings and conference market as an economic arm for Jamaica,” she said, adding that the event bolstered that initiative, as well as furthered the discussion on a burgeoning industry within the economy.

According to Guise, the Montego Bay Convention Centre is adequately suited to deliver on all facets of this dynamic conference. “We are looking forward to hosting all our guests both regionally and internationally,” she pointed out.

OPPORTUNITY FOR NETWORKING

The seminar is also expected to provide unrivalled networking opportunities among the policymakers, strategic influencers and decision makers shaping the industry and access to players and decision makers in the Caribbean, LATAM, and North America.

Gloria Henry, Montego Bay Chamber of Commerce president, is elated to host the event in the city.

“The chamber supports the development of the legal use of cannabis for medicinal and related purposes. The chamber endorses this conference, which will further expose the tremendous investment opportunities available within this industry and which Jamaica is yet to exploit. We congratulate Douglas Gordon and his business partners for organising this conference, bringing important players together and raising the visibility of cannabis as another economic driver that can support growth in agriculture and medicine in Jamaica,” Henry said.

Last year alone, legal cannabis sales increased by 25 per cent to reach US$6.7 billion in total US sales alone. The legal cannabis market is forecasted to hit a tremendous US$21.8 billion in total annual sales by 2020. As Jamaica develops a framework for legalisation and regulation, its long-established brand recognition means that the island already has a head start in establishing a world-class legalised cannabis industry.

Scheduled speakers include Boaz Wachtel, co-strategist, Israel’s Medical Cannabis Programme; Professor Asseem Sappal Dean, Oaksterdam University; Edmund Bartlett, minister of tourism, Jamaica; Mark Kleiman, chairman, BOTEC Analysis; Marcus Richardson, CEO, Cannabinoid Research and Development; and Tamar Todd, legal director, Drug Policy Alliance.