50 Meticais

Mozambique's first post-independence banknote series, of which this 50 Meticais is a part, was issued by the República Popular under FRELIMO governance following the 1975 independence from Portugal and the subsequent adoption of the metical to replace the escudo. Thomas De La Rue handled the printing, as they did for a substantial number of newly independent African states during this period — a practical arrangement that sat uneasily alongside the socialist rhetoric of self-determination, but one that few new central banks were in a position to avoid.

The watermark is the sole security feature, which was not unusual for the period but left the series vulnerable to counterfeiting pressure as the 1980s wore on.