The Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB) has unveiled a commemorative EC$50 note that celebrates Grenada’s Golden Jubilee.
The note, which will begin circulating in Grenada in June, features key elements of the Spice Isle’s history including images of Prime Ministers Eric Gairy and Maurice Bishop and Olympic 400 metre champion Kirani James.
At last evening’s unveiling, ECCB Governor Timothy Antoine said the commemorative $50 note was proposed to him last June by Grenadian Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell, whom he noted is the country’s first head of government to be born post-independence.
Antoine said he was “excited” but immediately questioned “how quickly could we get this done” since the design, manufacturing, production and publishing of a note usually takes two years.
A team from Grenada, led by creative Orlando Romain, designed the bill.
While the note will be issued in Grenada, Antoine said it will be legal tender in Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, Montserrat, St Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia, and St Vincent and the Grenadines, which all make up the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union (ECCU).
In his brief remarks prior to unveiling the bill, Mitchell stated the note reflects “things that are uniquely Grenadian”.
The prime minister said he hopes residents of Grenada, Carriacou and Petite Martinique are pleased with the design.
Grenada is the first member of the ECCU to attain independence from the United Kingdom and Mitchell said they will support member states having their own commemorative $50 when they achieve the milestone.
Grenada’s Governor General Dame Cécile La Grenade was presented with the first note by Antoine.
The second note was presented to Gairy’s daughters, who were both emotional about their father being honoured.
Marcelle Gairy said they were “surprised” by the honour.
“It was a surprise. A very pleasant surprise…I did not expect any of it. I knew they were doing an unveiling but I didn’t know they we would have also received one of the notes” she told Loop News.
“I’m very grateful to the prime minister and his government for the very great honour that he has given my father. My father was a visionary and a lot of the things that have been achieved during the 50 years, he came up with and decided there was nothing impossible about getting to the stage that we are at now. He wanted to make sure that Grenada wasn’t too small or too poor in order to stand on its own feet.”
The prime minister presented the second and third minted notes Bishop’s widow, Angela Bishop and James.
