In an effort to combat counterfeiting and the funding of islamist organizations, Nigeria, a country in West Africa, today introduced new Naira banknotes.
In an economy where the majority of the currency is held outside of banks, Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari claimed on Wednesday that the new bank notes would assist to control liquidity.
The 200, 500 and 1000 naira notes are the ones being replaced. The redesigned notes which are produced in Nigeria by the Nigeria Security Printing and Minting have new security features, the president said during the introduction of the new notes at the presidential Villa.
The central bank of Nigeria is reported to announce plans of issuing the new banknotes to the public from December 15, 2022.
Members of the public have till January 31, 2023, to hand in their old notes.