Ksh. 1000 Notes: Kenya has announced the official use of new generation notes and the abolishment of the old Sh. 1,000 notes.
This revelation was made on June 1, during the Madaraka Day celebrations. During the event, Central Bank of Kenya governor Patrick Njoroge announced that the new notes were issued on Friday, May 31 via a Gazette notice. The new notes are now legal tender.
The CBK governor added that in order to curb illicit finance, all old Sh. 1,000 series notes have been withdrawn by a Gazette notice dated May 31 and Kenyans have until October 1 to exchange the older notes for newer ones. “We have assessed the grave concern that our large banknotes—particularly the older Sh. 1,000 series—are being used for illicit financial flows in Kenya and also other countries in the region. More recently we have seen the emergence of some counterfeits. These are grave concerns that would jeopardise proper transactions and the conduct of commerce in our currency,” he said.
SEE MORE: Photos of the new Kenyan currency
All notes bear the image of KICC. They also have each of the Big Five animals. Sh. 50 is for green energy, Sh. 100 for agriculture, Sh. 200 social services, Sh. 500 for tourism and Ksh. 1000 Notes for governance. The new-look notes are also designed to enable the visually-impaired to use them.
” All bank notes bear the image of Kenyatta International Conference Centre, one of the most iconic and recognisable landmarks in our country. The banknotes also embody each of the big five; nyati, chui, kifaru, simba, and ndovu,” said Mr. Njoroge. “The new banknotes bear a significant aspect of our nation, and like the coins, will serve as a means of passing knowledge, conserving culture and promoting our global uniqueness.”
The notes that are currently in circulation have the images of the first President Jomo Kenyatta and his successor Daniel Arap Moi. Former president Mwai Kibaki did not have his face made on a legal tender, but had a Sh. 40 coin that was made in his image.