PATHUM THANI: Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul on Tuesday accompanied his Malaysian counterpart Khairy Jamaluddin Abu Bakar on a visit to a Government Pharmaceutical Organization (GPO) cannabis plantation to discuss the comprehensive medical usage of the plant.
Mr Anutin, who also serves as deputy prime minister, said Malaysia is exploring the use of cannabis for medical treatment.
Moreover, during the World Health Organization's World Health Assembly in May, Malaysia expressed its intention to learn from, and share information with, Thailand on this issue.
"The country has been using cannabis for medical treatment for over 300 years by using it as both an ingredient in food and medicine, long before it was added to the narcotics list," Mr Anutin said.
"Fortunately, the ministry met with success in withdrawing the plant from the narcotics list, except for extracts with over 0.2% THC," he added, referring to tetrahydrocannabinol, its chief psychoactive agent.
"That resulted from three factors, namely, the strong support of the government, sufficient academic and medical knowledge to affirm its benefits as a form of medical treatment, and effective communication with the public."
The Malaysian minister visited the plantation in Thanyaburi district on the sidelines of attending the Asian Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) Health Week in Bangkok, which started on Monday.
Mr Anutin said he explained to his Malaysian counterpart how the site is fully compliant with all relevant guidelines including the Department of Thai Traditional and Alternative Medicine's rules on planting cannabis, the Thai Food and Drug Administration's policy on registering such a site, and Department of Medical Sciences rules on extracting ingredients.
"Cannabis is already registered as a herb on the national drug list so patients under the health security system can access such treatments," he said.
"If Malaysia moves forward and implements [a similar policy to Thailand], we expect to see more in the way of joint research and development on the medicinal usage of cannabis," he added.