Honoring South African Milestones

The South African Reserve Bank (SARB) introduced four new coins as part of the country’s Milestones of Freedom campaign, launched by President Cyril Ramaphosa on June 18. “The program commemorates key milestones in South Africa’s democratic journey, while also strengthening service delivery and promoting social cohesion,” Ramaphosa says.

The coins were released into circulation between June and August. Two of the new issues are the first South African coins to feature women. The 2-rand coins honor the following events:

• The 125th anniversary of Charlotte Maxeke graduating from Wilberforce University in the United States, making her the first black woman in South Africa to earn a university degree.
• The 70th anniversary of the 1956 Women’s March, when 20,000 women marched to the Union Buildings in Pretoria.
• The 50th anniversary of the 1976 Soweto youth uprising, when approximately 20,000 students protested the introduction of Afrikaans (a language spoken in South Africa) in black schools.
• The 30th anniversary of the 1996 South African Constitution.

“Let me remind members of the public that these coins remain ordinary tender at their face value, however beautiful they may be,” SARB Governor Lesetja Kganyago says. “They belong in circulation to be passed from one person to another to pass the story of those great women. Keep the coins circulating.”