(CNN) New Zealand may become the first Asia-Pacific country -- and only the third worldwide -- to legalize marijuana.

A binding referendum on legalization will be held alongside the next general election in 2020, the government announced this week.

It's part of a confidence and supply agreement between the ruling Labour Party and the Greens, who welcomed the binding nature of the vote.

"We've long advocated for a binding referendum with legislation setting out a clear, evidence-based regulatory framework. That way, we avoid a Brexit-type situation figuring out what a 'yes' vote means after the fact, and cut grey moral panic from the debate," Green Party MP Chloe Swarbrick said on Twitter.

A substantial number of MPs have admitted to past illegal drug use, and they now preside over law that criminalises people who do the same. I'm calling on all politicians to live up to their rhetoric and remove criminal sanctions for those who use drugs. @NZParliament #nzpol pic.twitter.com/8ZtFUSeTc6 — Chlöe Swarbrick (@_chloeswarbrick) November 7, 2018

Speaking in Parliament last month , Swarbrick blasted the hypocrisy of MPs who admitted they had taken drugs in the past but did not support legalization.

Read More