The story of the Pula

As a member of the Rand Monetary Area (RMA) at the time of independence in 1966, Botswana used the South African Rand as her national currency.On September 6, 1974, Gaborone announced the decision to withdraw from the RMA.

 This required substantial preparatory work, including choosing the name for the currency, and how much and in what denominations it should be produced. Regarding the name, the choice of Pula (meaning 'rain' or 'blessings') as the basic unit made up of 100 thebe ('shield') was overwhelmingly supported by a poll of public opinion.