Botswana's thebe coinage was introduced in 1976 when the country abandoned the South African rand — a currency it had used since independence in 1966 — in favour of the new pula system. The switch was a deliberate assertion of economic separation from Pretoria at a time when southern African politics made such gestures consequential. The nickel clad steel composition adopted for this later series replaced an earlier nickel-brass version, reflecting the global shift toward cheaper coinage materials as metal costs rose through the 1990s.
Botswana's thebe coinage was introduced in 1976 when the country abandoned the South African rand — a currency it had used since independence in 1966 — in favour of the new pula system. The switch was a deliberate assertion of economic separation from Pretoria at a time when southern African politics made such gestures consequential. The nickel clad steel composition adopted for this later series replaced an earlier nickel-brass version, reflecting the global shift toward cheaper coinage materials as metal costs rose through the 1990s.