KWACHA: COIN OF MALAWI
5 kwacha, 2006: Republic of Malawi
5 KWACHA.
Local fishermen at work: the fishing process (water bodies make up about 20% of Malawi's territory; the largest is Lake Malawi (Nyasa), which is the third largest lake in Africa).
MALAWI.
Coat of arms of Malawi: a lion and a leopard (ancient Malawian totems) hold a shield based on the coat of arms of Nyasaland (British protectorate that was established in 1907 when the former British Central Africa Protectorate changed its name), motto "Unity and Freedom".
Coin design: Michael Hibbit.
Royal Mint (United Kingdom).
- Bimetallic — nickel brass centre in copper-nickel ring: 27 mm - 10.28 g
- Reference price: 2$
COIN KWACHA — WHERE & WHEN (coins catalog: by names & emitents)
- REPUBLIC OF MALAWI (1971-...): kwacha = 100 tambala
- REPUBLIC OF ZAMBIA (1974-...): kwacha = 100 ngwee
KWACHA as coin name.
Kwacha is a modern currency and coin of two neighboring African states — Zambia and Malawi.
Zambian kwacha was put into circulation in 1968 instead of the Zambian pound; divisible by 100 ngwee. The first anniversary coin of this denomination is dated 1974 ("Decade of Independence"; scarce mintage), while the circulation kwacha in the form of a coin was first minted in 1989.
Malawian kwacha was put into circulation in 1971 instead of the Malawian pound; is divided into 100 tambala. The first local kwacha coins date back to 1971, but the mass issue of circulating coins of this denomination has been ongoing since 1992.
Both states actively produce jubilee and commemorative coins for numismatists, mainly from precious metals (silver, gold).
Regarding the origin of the name of the currency (both Zambian and Malawian), in the languages of the local peoples (from the Nyanja, Bemba, and Chitonga languages), the term "kwacha" denotes the concept of "dawn, beginning" (the motto of the independence fighters — "New dawn of freedom").
