Country of much ethnic diversity
INDIANS were brought to Uganda to build railways but today they dominate the country’s economy, contributing up to 65% of its tax revenues.
According to Forbes magazine, Uganda’s wealthiest man is also Indian. Sudhir Ruparelia, whose family hails from Gujarat, India, is estimated to have a fortune worth $1.2 billion (R17.4bn). He has investments in banking, insurance, education, broadcasting, real estate, floriculture, hotels and resorts.
Wikipedia.org reported that in 1895 the construction of the Uganda Railway began and the Imperial British East Africa Company awarded Alibhai Mulla Jeevanjee, an agent based in Karachi, India, the contract to supply the required labour force.
According to the website, Jeevanjee recruited about 32 000 men from Punjab, India, over six years to work on the project.
Some died, others returned to India after the end of their contracts, and the rest chose to stay.
Gujarati traders, referred to as passenger Indians, later arrived to serve the Indian labourers by opening businesses such as supermarkets. Up until 1971, there were about 80 000 Indians living in the country.
They were prosperous and dominated much of the country’s economy and this prompted the rise of resentment and Indophobia, the website says.
In 1972, Indians were expelled from the country by Idi Amin, a Ugandan military officer who served as the country’s president from 1971 to 1979. As a result, many Indians migrated to the UK, Canada, the US and elsewhere and began rebuilding their lives. After Amin’s death, more Indians who were born in Uganda started migrating back. They again dominated the country’s economy.
According to a report by bbc.com, despite making up less than 1% of the population, the Indian community is estimated to contribute up to 65% of Uganda’s tax revenues. Today, there are more than 44 million people living in
Uganda with 20 000 being Indians.
Vivek Wadhera, 39, the chief operating officer of Agritech Startup, a company that uses mobile phone technology to make farming more profitable for smallholder farmers, lives in Uganda’s capital city, Kampala. He is single and his family is from India. Wadhera has also lived in Zambia, Botswana, the US and South Africa.
“As a person of Indian origin, I have had a keen interest in the Indian communities living in the various places I have travelled to. Uganda stands out among these countries. Indians have been in Uganda since they were brought to East Africa by their British colonial masters in the 19th century to build railways.”
He said that from building railways, many moved to careers in trading.
“What stands out about Uganda is probably the world’s largest incident of Indophobia, wherein in 1972 the country’s ruler Idi Amin expelled 70 000 Asians. What’s even more special though, in my opinion, is that subsequently, the country’s current president, Yoweri Museveni, invited Indians back into the country.”
Wadhera said the Indian community was now bigger and stronger.
“I have come across Indians in Uganda who are happy with their life in the country. Indians today can be found in business, trading and professional white-collar trades. They are among the most prosperous people in the country.”
He said that what he found interesting about Indians of Hindu lineage in Uganda was that they have preserved their languages, religion and heritage more strongly than their counterparts in South Africa.
"I believe this is because East African Indians were historically able to travel back and forth between East Africa and India. It was difficult for South African Indians during apartheid because India suspended trade and contact with them but they maintained contact and trade with those living in East Africa.”
He said the quality of life was favourable. “The weather is great. The people are friendly, hardworking and enterprising. The lifestyle variety is good, with a fair number of things to do in one’s leisure time.
“The indigenous Ugandan food and fruit I have tried are great. The economy is market-oriented. The country has tremendous natural beauty and substantial ethnic diversity.”
Wadhera said the challenge seemed to be social cliques.
“People tend to hang out in groups of friends they grew up with and are familiar with. It takes time and effort for a foreigner to penetrate such groups.
“There’s a thriving, vibrant Indian community here. There are some 30 or so Indian organisations or associations ranging from religious to secular to socio-cultural.
“As a Hindu, there are several temples. The Hindu temple in Nakasero, in the heart of Kampala, is a massive, impressive structure that’s a replica of the famous Somnath temple in Gujarat, India.
“I partake in events such as celebrating Diwali and observing prayers like Shivarathri,” Wadhera said.