10 Zaïres Provisional issue

This provisional issue was created by overprinting existing Zaïre banknote stock — the "R" prefix in the Pick reference denotes a reissued or provisional type, used when the Banque du Zaïre needed to extend circulation of a denomination without commissioning an entirely new printing. Giesecke & Devrient's Leipzig facility had a long relationship with the Mobutu-era central bank, supplying notes through much of the Zaïre period.

The decade-long date span reflects deliberate ambiguity in the issuing records rather than a prolonged print run — precise dates on provisional overprint issues from this period are notoriously difficult to pin down.