Pakistanis in Somalia
Pakistani diaspora
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Pakistanis in Somalia are residents of Somalia who are of Pakistani ancestry. They were historically a small community of retail traders and businesspeople.
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| Total population | |
|---|---|
| 8,200 Baloch (1989); <1,000 Indo-Pakistanis (2001)[1] | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Mogadishu, Kismayo | |
| Languages | |
| Balochi, Urdu, Punjabi, Sindhi, Somali | |
| Religion | |
| Islam mostly Sunni | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Pakistani Diaspora, Asian Africans |
Demographics
No official data exists on the current number or ethnic subdivisions of Pakistanis in Somalia.[2] Under 1,000 Shia Indo-Pakistanis were reported to reside in the country in 2001.[1]
As of 1989, a group of ethnic Baloch also lived in Somalia. An Iranic community, they were estimated at 8,200 residents.[3]
Community
There has been a small community of Pakistanis in Somalia since at least the 1960s.[4] Historically, they were mainly shopkeepers,[5] concentrated in Mogadishu and other southern urban areas.[6] Pakistanis were among the main expatriate communities in the country, which also included Indians, Yemenis and Italians.[7][self-published source]
After the civil war broke out in Somalia in the early 1990s, most of the resident Pakistanis left the country.[8] Around 5,700 Pakistani troops contributed to the ensuing UN peacekeeping operation in southern Somalia.[9]
In the 2000s, some Pakistanis were reported to be among the ranks of foreign fighters involved in the Al-Shabaab-led Islamist insurgency in Somalia.[10] Pakistani missionaries from the Tablighi Jamaat also frequently journeyed to the country, where they would engage in missionary work and dawah.[11]
Organizations
The Pakistani community in Somalia was diplomatically represented by the Pakistani embassy in Mogadishu. Established in 1973, it provided services to the resident Pakistanis.[12]