Canada has become the second country after Uruguay to legalise possession and use of recreational cannabis. The first recreational cannabis to be legally bought in Canada was purchased at midnight on Wednesday (02:30 GMT) on the eastern island of Newfoundland amid queues of hundreds of people.
Marijuana, for medicinal reasons has been legal in the country since 2001. However, there remains serious concerns about the effects of the drug and the readiness for police forces to tackle drug impaired driving.
Information has already reached 15m households about the new laws and public awareness campaigns are on-going.
Canadian provinces and municipalities have been preparing for months to legalise the use and possession of cannabis. They are responsible for setting out where cannabis can be bought and consumed. This has created a patchwork of more or less restrictive legislation across the country.
BBC News