New Consumption Patterns of Marijuana and Their Implications for Law Enforcement in Kenya

Abstract

New consumption patterns of marijuana have emerged in the recent past alongside the conventional ones. In the jurisdictions like Kenya where marijuana is outlawed, these new patterns of consumption comprise the edibles and have posed detection challenges to law enforcers leaving them open to possible abuse and attendant health risks. This manuscript set out to uncover the new patterns of marijuana consumption and their implications on law enforcement in Kenya. The study adopted a mixed methods design to collect data in Siaya and Vihiga counties of Western Kenya. Convenience and purposive sampling techniques were used to identify 327 survey respondents, 20 key informants and 8 FGD participants at the community level. The FGDs included women and men of different age groups while the key informants were different State and Non-State actors at the national and county levels. Semi-structured interview guides were used to collect data from FGDs and key informants. Findings suggest that consumption patterns are changing and new patterns of substance preparations and administration have emerged alongside the conventional ones. Top among the new patterns include using marijuana as an ingredient in cakes and other confectioneries, boiling and blending it into juice, and using it as tea leaves and additive in other alcoholic beverages. A majority of the young people were found to use the drug currently and with no limitation of time for its use contrary to the past when the old were the majority partakers with self-regulation capacity and norms around time, place and occasion of use. Finally, the study unveiled that the law enforcement agencies lack the capacity and tools to detect the new consumption patterns and there is a tendency to over-focus on the low-end traditional consumers and traffickers. The study concludes that there is need for more studies to unravel the new consumption patterns especially in urban centres and train and resource the law enforcement agencies on their detection mechanisms.