One hundred days after the pula was introduced, the rand ceased to be legal tender in Botswana.

In 1991, bronze-plated steel replaced bronze in the 5 thebe, nickel-plated steel replaced cupro-nickel in the 10, 25 and 50 thebe and the 1 pula changed to a smaller, nickel-brass, equilateral-curve seven-sided coin.

The current series of notes was introduced on 23 August 2009[13] and contains, for the first time, a 200 pula banknote.

In response to the concern of the poor quality of the paper of the 10 pula banknote, the Bank of Botswana unveiled a 10 pula banknote in polymer in November 2017 which was issued to the public on 1 February 2018.

The word pula also serves as part of the national motto of the Kingdom of Lesotho.

As in Botswana, it means "rain" in the Sotho language and is considered a synonym for "blessing".