ASTANA -- Darigha Nazarbaeva, the eldest daughter of Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbaev, has proposed giving control of vast, wild marijuana fields in southern Kazakhstan to pharmaceutical firms.
Speaking in parliament on January 13, Nazarbaeva, who is a lawmaker, said huge financial resources had been spent in the past decades to eliminate the marijuana fields in the Shu (aka Chu or Chui) Valley, which is shared with neighboring Kyrgyzstan.
Nazarbaeva said that since the wild marijuana continues to grow abundantly, despite the efforts to eliminate it, it would be practical to let international pharmaceutical companies exploit the crop.
She said such a move could help regulate the situation, create new jobs, and generate revenue.
Nazarbaeva's proposal comes days after a prominent narcologist in Kyrgyzstan, Jenishbek Nazaraliev, proposed the legalization of marijuana in order to regulate its production in the Shu Valley.
Speaking in parliament on January 13, Nazarbaeva, who is a lawmaker, said huge financial resources had been spent in the past decades to eliminate the marijuana fields in the Shu (aka Chu or Chui) Valley, which is shared with neighboring Kyrgyzstan.
Nazarbaeva said that since the wild marijuana continues to grow abundantly, despite the efforts to eliminate it, it would be practical to let international pharmaceutical companies exploit the crop.
She said such a move could help regulate the situation, create new jobs, and generate revenue.
Nazarbaeva's proposal comes days after a prominent narcologist in Kyrgyzstan, Jenishbek Nazaraliev, proposed the legalization of marijuana in order to regulate its production in the Shu Valley.