Upgrading of Banknotes to be Implemented by June
By: , March 8, 2023
Photo: Adrian Walker
Minister of Finance and the Public Service, Dr. the Hon. Nigel Clarke, displays a specimen of the new $100 Jamaican bank note, as he opened the 2023/24 Budget Debate in the House of Representatives on Tuesday (March 7).
Photo: Adrian Walker
Prime Minister, the Most. Hon. Andrew Holness (left), and Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, Hon. Olivia Grange, examine specimens of the new Jamaican banknotes in the House of Representatives on Tuesday (March 7).
Photo: Adrian Walker
Prime Minister, the Most. Hon. Andrew Holness (left), and Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, Hon. Olivia Grange, examine specimens of the new Jamaican banknotes in the House of Representatives on Tuesday (March 7).The Full Story
Upgrading of Jamaica’s banknotes will be implemented by mid-June, says Minister of Finance and the Public Service, Dr. the Hon. Nigel Clarke.
Making the disclosure while opening the 2023/24 Budget Debate in the House of Representatives on Tuesday (March 7), the Minister said the suite of notes will include a new $2,000 denomination.
The Minister told the House that the upgraded notes have the latest in material technology for greater durability, which reduces the frequency of replacement and the whole-of-life cost of the dollar bills, adding that they have features that better meet the needs of the visually impaired.
“With this upgrade, unlike what obtains now for certain denominations, several banknote printers will be able to print Jamaican banknotes, thus increasing competition and providing better assurance of competitive pricing in the future,” Dr. Clarke explained.
He said a Bank of Jamaica (BOJ) technical study “demonstrated the need” for a $2,000 note to enable more efficient commercial transactions settled in cash, and the printer of the banknotes has completed manufacturing the entire stock of the new polymer series, adding that they are ready to be issued.
The Minister informed that the BOJ has developed and “partially rolled out” a public relations campaign to provide detailed information, pointing out that the exercise will be in place by the end of March.
Two former Prime Ministers, the Most Hon. Michael Manley and the Most Hon. Edward Seaga, are highlighted on the $2,000 bill.
Former Prime Ministers, the Most Hon. Hugh Shearer and the Most Hon. Sir Donald Sangster, are featured on the upgraded $5,000 note.
Dr. Clarke said he is elated that Jamaica’s first National Hero, the Right Excellent Marcus Mosiah Garvey, is on a banknote, the $100 denomination.
The $500 note will include National Heroes, the Right Excellent Sam Sharpe and Nanny of the Maroons, while National Heroes the Right Excellent Norman Manley, and Sir Alexander Bustamante, post-Independent Jamaica’s first Prime Minister, will be featured on the $1,000 note.