This article looks at the varied and colourful paper money issues of the small island nations of the South Pacific (Figure 1). Many of these nations do not have currencies of their own, though that has not prevented several of them from issuing coins, primarily for the collector market. These include Kiribati, Nauru and Tuvalu, who use Australian dollars, while Niue, Pitcairn and Tokelau use New Zealand dollars. Palau, the Federated States of Micronesia and the Marshall Islands all use US dollars.
We are, therefore, left with six nations that currently issue their own paper money, plus the CFP (Communauté Financière du Pacifique) franc notes issued by the IEOM (Institut d’Émission d’Outre-Mer) in New Caledonia and French Polynesia.
Mention should first be made). They were used in New Guinea, as well as the Solomon Islands and other islands temporarily occupied by Japan, between 1942 and 1945. The designs are identical to other JIM issues but distinguishable by their prefix letters of OA to OC.
