New R5 coin introduced to celebrate democracy

Thursday, June 26, 2014

Pretoria - The South African Reserve Bank (SARB) will issue a commemorative circulation R5 coin celebrating 20 Years of Democracy in South Africa.

The coin has the “20 Years of Freedom” logo depicted on the reverse side instead of the usual image of the wildebeest on the bi-metal R5 coin.

The obverse of the coin depicts the South African Coat of Arms, the year of issue (2014), with “South Africa” written in Tshivenda (Afurika Tshipembe) and in IsiNdebele (iSewula Afrika).

“This coin is a normal circulation coin and will form part of the R5 coins that are already in circulation throughout the country from July this year,” the South African Reserve Bank said in a statement.

In commemoration of the two decades of democracy, the South African Mint (SA Mint), a wholly owned subsidiary of the SARB, has launched a special three-coin Democracy Coin Set, consisting of a 24-carat gold R200 coin depicting former President Nelson Mandela casting his first vote; a sterling silver R2 crown featuring the South African flag and a commemorative R5 coin celebrating '20 Years of Freedom'.

The 20 Years of Democracy Coin Set is available for purchase at the SA Mint at the SA Mint in Centurion. – SAnews.gov.za