Nigerian CommunicationWeek

CBN to Print New Polymer Notes

In a bid to save cost and reduce the frequency of processing/sorting and replacing unfit paper notes, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is to issue 1.915 billion new polymer currency notes of N5, N10 and N50 by September 30.
The apex bank has concluded arrangements to mint about 1.3 billion of it abroad while the remaining 615 million will be minted by the Nigerian Security Printing and Minting Company Plc (NSPMC).
Lamido Sanusi, the CBN governor at the flag-off of the sensitisation campaign on the new notes, said the new notes would be launched on September 30 by President Umar Musa Yar’adua.
According to him, though it will cost Nigeria at least 1.8 percent more to print a polymer note as against paper money, polymer notes last about four times longer.
Ben Onyido,  CBN’s director of currency and branch operations explained that the NSPMC cannot meet the huge figures of the polymer materials because with the current minting of the N20 notes, it would have achieved optimum capacity with additional 615 million mints thus, the need to source the balance abroad.
The CBN governor in his speech noted that the new N5, N10 and N50 had retained their current designs and other key elements, adding that only the water marks had been replaced with the transparent window and G-switch turns from the green to gild when the note is tilted. He said these are essential polymer features present in the N20 note which enhance security of the note.
"Since polymer notes last longer in circulation, it implies that the frequency of processing/sorting and replacing unfit/dirty notes will be reduced, translating into cost-saving. The reduction in cost will free resources that could be diverted to other uses", he said.
Sanusi also explained that the option of polymer was because it also eliminates many of the environmental problems associated with the disposal of unfit notes. The waste can be recycled by plastic industries into other useful plastic products, resulting in a second life cycle and generating some revenue in the process.
Sanusi said this was in line with international best practice, which required that the currency structure be reviewed periodically to safeguard the integrity of the currency and ensure efficiency and cost effectiveness.
It would be recalled that four lower bans note denominations of the Naira-N5, N10, N20, and N50- were redesigned and issued into circulation on February 28, 2007 under the CBN currency restructuring programme.

 

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