Overview: Here, cannabis is legal for recreational use

In the ongoing coalition negotiations between the leading German parties, marijuana could be an easy topic to agree on. Despite numerous points of contention, the center-left Social Democrats (SPD), the neoliberal Free Democrats (FDP) and the Greens can come closer on the issue of cannabis legalization.

The FDP highlights the revenue the state could generate from taxing pre-rolled joints, cannabis flowers and edibles. The Greens say legalization would put an end to illicit sales and curb organized crime.

On Wednesday, Social Democratic health expert Karl Lauterbach called on the next government to legalize cannabis.

Here's a look at countries that have already eased their policies.

Famous Dutch coffee shops The Dutch government insists that cannabis, like other soft drugs, is tolerated but not legal. Nonetheless, recreational use has been decriminalized since 1976, which has made the Netherlands famous for its liberal attitude towards marijuana.

Dutch coffee shops can sell up to 5 grams of soft drugs per person per day, but they have to adhere to strict licensing regulations. For example, they are not allowed to serve alcohol.

Advertising the coffee shop or drugs is prohibited, and keeping more than 500 grams of soft drugs in the shop's inventory is a criminal offense.

Coffee shops are only allowed to sell drugs to residents of the Netherlands. A study commissioned by Amsterdam found that 57% of foreigners who travel to Amsterdam visit such coffee shops as a "very important reason" to visit.

Uruguay: Legal weed for tourists In 2013, Uruguay made headlines for becoming the first country to fully legalize recreational cannabis use nationwide. Since then, non-medical users have been able to register to purchase marijuana from one of three legal sources: home growers, clubs, or pharmacies.

Each adult Uruguayan is allowed to grow up to six plants at home, but the harvest cannot exceed 480 grams of marijuana per year.

Now the country is planning to open its grass market to tourists.

According to Deputy Tourism Minister Remo Monzeglio, the aim is not to promote Uruguay as a destination for cannabis tourism, but to steer tourists away from street sales and onto the regulated market.

However, a 2018 report showed that an estimated majority of marijuana users continue to buy it in the unregulated market.

Jamaica: ritual joints without borders The island has long been associated with marijuana and reggae music, but it wasn't until 2015 that the possession of small amounts of marijuana was decriminalized.

Private individuals can grow up to five cannabis plants. Smoking ganja, the local slang for marijuana, is legal in licensed dispensaries and in private homes. People caught with less than 50 grams of marijuana will not face arrest or criminal records - although they will have to pay a small fine unless they have a doctor's prescription.

Followers of the Rastafarian religion are allowed to smoke an unlimited amount of ganja for sacred purposes. Rastafari regard ganja as a "wisdom herb" and use it as a meditation aid to get closer to their inner spiritual selves.

Portugal's radical drug policy In 2001 Portugal made a radical move towards decriminalizing drugs.

Personal possession of any kind of substance is considered a pure administrative offense. Those caught with drugs do not go to jail or the criminal record, but are asked to register at a rehabilitation center, pay fines, or do community service, depending on how much weed they own.

In Portugal, however, marijuana is still equated with heroin. This means that people who don't have a prescription for medical marijuana and still want to buy the drug will have to resort to buying weed from illegal dealers.

Canada: Legalizing Marijuana and Prison Inmates Recreational use of cannabis was legalized in Canada in 2018. A 2020 study commissioned by the state showed that contrary to expectations, daily marijuana use increased by only about 1% across all age groups. Daily teenage consumption, which many feared would skyrocket once legalized, increased by about 3%.

However, legalization has significantly reduced the number of cannabis-related arrests. In 2018, police recorded 26,402 cases of cannabis possession by the time legalization went into effect in mid-October. In 2019, that number dropped to 46, according to Statistics Canada.

Possession of more than 30 grams of marijuana remains a crime.

However, legalization brought about a huge shift in the disproportionate impact of Canadian incarceration on minorities. A study by the Ontario Human Rights Commission showed that while blacks make up 8.8% of Toronto's population, they faced 34% of marijuana possession charges from 2013 to 2017.

USA: Financial gains through legalization

A total of 35 states have legalized marijuana for medical use, 16 of which allow adults to legally use the substance for recreational use. The states of Colorado and Washington legalized marijuana nearly 10 years ago. Since then, a large number of research projects have examined the effects of legalization on the US economy.

A recent report from the Cato Institute, a Washington-based liberal think tank, found that the legal marijuana industry will create 77,000 jobs in the US in 2020 alone.

The report also highlights the lucrative tax revenues from legal marijuana trafficking. Colorado makes an average of $ 20 million a month, and the California government - which legalized adult recreational use in 2016 - averages about $ 50 million a month.

Georgia, South Africa and Mexico join the club The countries of Georgia and South Africa both legalized recreational marijuana use in 2018.

In just one year, Georgia lifted criminal sanctions for marijuana use and introduced a law allowing marijuana export.

In March, the Mexican Supreme Court decriminalized the private recreational use of cannabis by adults. While marijuana sales are not legal in Mexico, the country of 129 million people could become one of the largest marijuana markets in the world.