The Banco de Moçambique issued a new family of banknotes on Sunday, June 16, 2024. The denominations of 20, 50 and 100 meticais are printed on polymer and the 200, 500 and 1000 on paper, the same as in the preceding series, which has been in circulation since 2006.
The theme of metical banknotes (and coins) of the 2024 series maintains the tradition of celebrating the values of Mozambique's cultural, historical and faunal heritage. An issue date of June 16th was chosen because the metical, Mozambique's new currency, was initially launched on June 16, 1975.
A portrait of Samora Moisés Machel (1933-1986) appears on the obverse of each banknote at the right. He is facing to the left. On the old series, his portrait is center left and he is facing to the right. Machel was a Mozambican military commander and political leader. A socialist in the tradition of Marxism-Leninism, he served as the first President of Mozambique after the country gained independence in 1975. Machel died in office in 1986 when his presidential aircraft crashed near the Mozambican-South African border.
The banknotes also picture patterns particular to the Tonga people, which are widely used when weaving artisan baskets; and various flora and fauna characteristic of Mozambique
The polymer banknotes are printed on the Guardian™ substrate and have a large, transparent window on the front left, intricately inset with a golden circle and feather that are used to symbolize the pre-colonial practice of carrying powdered gold inside the "barrel" of a duck quill. The brilliant, lustrous gold has been achieved using Metalix™ ink, while the feather is rendered with Effect Cameo™. The quill changes color when held to the light, shifting from gold to purple on the 20 meticais, blue to gold on the 50 meticais, and gold to red on the 100 meticais.
Each denomination also features a shadow portrait of Samora Moises Machel, overlaid with a latent image of the bank's initials, and tactile features to assist people with visual impairment. On the reverse side of each banknote, Iriswitch™ ink has been used to produce an iridescent band that reveals the denomination and central bank logotype when held to the light.
The new polymer notes measure:
20: 141 x 65 mm
50: 144 x 65 mm
100: 147 x 65 mm.
