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Ancient links between India and Ethiopia have existed even before history was recorded during the Axumite period. (2nd to 9th century A.D.) According to historian Richard Pankhurst, "contacts between the land which came to be known as Ethiopia and India date back to the dawn of history." [citation needed] Trade between India and the Axumite Kingdom flourished in the 6th century A.D. The ancient port of Adulis served as an entry-pot and the hub of maritime trade where Indian traders flocked to trade in spices and silk for ivory and gold.
In later periods, the arrival of Indians in the 17th century with the support of the Portuguese, the Indian troops in 1868 brought by Robert Napier, who was then the Commander-in-Chief of the British Army in Bombay, and in 1935 when fascist Italy invaded Ethiopia, were important events. Indian artisans and workers played an important role in the development of the famous city of Gondar and the palace of Emperor Fasilidas.[1]
General Rawley had been loaned by India to set up a military academy for Ethiopia. A large number of Indians had been employed between the late sixties and the nineties on a contractual basis to teach in the country's primary and secondary schools. But with the overthrow of Emperor Haile Selassie by Colonel Mengistu, the new communist regime introduced a policy of “Ethiopianisation” which meant that foreigners were not allowed to teach in Ethiopian schools. Consequently, all the teachers and a large number of Indian businessmen moved to other destinations.
Only a few Indians remained behind, among whom were those who had settled down in the country for more than three generations.[2]
- ^ "Ethiopia" (PDF). meaindia.nic.in. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2007-10-12. Retrieved 2007-03-07.
- ^ "Chapter 8: Other countries of Africa". Report of the High Level Committee on the Indian Diaspora (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 6 February 2012.
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