The Bank of Cape Verde held an outreach session for merchants at the Assomada Municipal Market and a training session for secondary students at the Grão-Duque Henri Technical School on Santiago, focusing on proper knowledge, care and handling of Cape Verdean escudo banknotes and on recognising banknote security features. Led by the Department of Issue, Treasury and Payment Systems (Issue and Treasury area), the initiative involved around 300 merchants and 150 students in grades 10 to 12. It covered good handling practices, the banknote life cycle, general characteristics of escudo notes and methods for verifying authenticity, linking poor handling to faster deterioration and earlier withdrawal from circulation and aiming to support counterfeiting prevention and safer cash use. The sessions form part of the Bank of Cape Verde’s ongoing work on cash knowledge and escudo security under its strategic plan.