and those based in Kenya, to work on the
Malawi Railways project. In 1967, the then
newly appointed Indian High Commissioner
to Malawi, Mr. Madan Mohan Khurana,
reiterated the cordial relations between the
two countries, especially the need for more
trade (in industrial and engineering products)
and cultural contacts. Furthermore, the Indian
community continued to play an important
role in the country’s economy. Since most of
the native population (about 4 million) were
subsistence farmers, the Indian businessmen
still retained their middleman role in the
country. The Patel Association made up of
the Patel clan from Gujarati, based in Limbe,
focused on retail trade (mostly furniture),
operated cinema halls, and the transport
and communications sector. However, the
Indians had to manoeuvre through the
capitalist-oriented and authoritarian regime
of Dr. Hastings Kamuzu Banda (1964-1994).
Banda’s policies on working with the Indian
community were somehow contradictory, in a
way that he showed elements of both wanting
the Indians to stay in the country, while at
other times, he did not hesitate to deport those
deemed to be a threat to his own political
position or those involved in underhand
activities. For instance, in 1970, he ordered all
Indian traders to move their businesses from
rural to urban areas, arguing that he needed to
create room for African businesses to operate.
However, it was clear that he did not call for
a complete shutdown of all Indian businesses,
owing to their important role in the country’s
economy. While he did not extend the off er of
citizenship to the Indians, he deemed them to
be very important to the country’s economic
well-being, and therefore indispensable. The
Indian businessmen also felt comfortable to
remain in Malawi because Dr. Banda did not
nationalize foreign-owned businesses, as had
been the case in other African countries, like
neighbouring Tanzania and Zambia.
The political and economic climate created
by the Banda regime, and the subsequent
governments of the new democratic
dispensation, has over the years seen the
Indian community in Malawi participate in the
country’s economy, at various levels, without
fear of losing their businesses. Many of them
24 • INDIA-MALAWI • 2019
The political and
economic climate
created by the
Banda regime, and
the subsequent
governments of the
new democratic
dispensation, has
over the years
seen the Indian
community in
Malawi participate
in the country’s
economy, at various
levels, without
fear of losing their
businesses.
have been active members of the Malawi
Confederation of Chambers of Commerce and
Industry (MCCCI). Cabinet Ministers and other
high-ranking Government offi cials have over
the years encouraged business collaborations
between Indian and Malawian traders, in the
hope that the latter would learn business skills
from the Indian traders.
There is a wide range of Indian businesses
currently operating in the country, some involved
in transport and communication, retail and
wholesale trade, and agricultural and farm inputs,
among others. The list includes such names as
TATA, Ashok Leyland, Bharti Airtel, Escorts,
Mahindra, Eicher, Bajaj Auto, Godrej, Sukam and
Shakti Pumps among others. There are also other
small-scale traders in urban centers and major
cities. All these have helped in Malawi’s socio-
economic development, including providing
private sector jobs to thousands of Malawians.
As of the most recent population estimates
in Malawi, there are about 8,000 persons of
Indian origin in the country, many of whom
have residential addresses in the major cities of
Lilongwe, Blantyre, Zomba, and Mzuzu. These
Indians remain integral to Malawi’s economic
growth and overall development.
References
• Floyd Dotson and Lillian O. Dotson. The
Indian Minority of Zambia, Rhodesia and
Malawi. New Haven: Yale University Press,
1968.
• Johnston, Harry. British Central Africa
Report, 1891-1897.
• The Times. April 27th 1967. ‘More Asians
are told to quit Malawi’.
• The Times. September 14th 1967. ‘India’s
new High Commissioner regrets ‘friction’
in Malawi’.
• The Times. January 16th 1969. ‘Malawi not
chasing Indians away – states President’.
• The Times. August 23rd 1969. ‘Tembo Pleads
to Asian Traders: “Help Our People”’.
• This is Malawi. Indian Council for Africa.
New Delhi: Universal Printers, 1970.
* The author is a Historian, currently based
at West Virginia University. He specializes in
Malawi’s political and economic history, and
Africa’s relations with the Indian Ocean World.