COSTA RICA: Medicinal marijuana was legalised on Wednesday with the president’s signing of a law passed a day earlier by congress.

The law also legalises the cultivation and industrial production of hemp. Recreational marijuana use continues to be prohibited. A previous attempt at the legislation was vetoed by President Carlos Alvarado earlier this year.

Mr Alvarado highlighted that the new law will advance the rights to health for those who need cannabis to alleviate the effects of their illnesses and spur economic development in rural areas where hemp will be grown.