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Uganda (Mangat 1969: 142). "In 1963 the total for East Africa was estimated at 32,000, with a possible 25,000 in Kenya (including 8,000 in Nairobi and 4,000 in Mombasa). The group in Uganda was rather small with a few families in Kampala and some scattered in the smaller townships. In Tanganyika, as well as scattered settlers, there were an estimated 850 Jains in Dar-es-Salaam, and 850 in Zanzibar" (Shah 1977: 372).
Almost all the Jains in East Africa have been Shvetambars originating from Western India, particularly Saurashtra, Gujarat, Kutch and Maharashtra. These can be further divided into two main groups: (1) the Visa Oswals, also known as Halari Jains; and (2) the Kutchi Jains. "In Kenya, Uganda and Tanganyika, the majority of Jains were Visa Oswals, and it was only in Zanzibar that approximately half of the community were Kutchi Jains and the other half Sthanakvasis" (Shah 1977: 372). A great majority of Jains had been Dukawalas or traders, settled in urban areas (Jain 1990: Chapter 4). With the advancement in education in the East African countries, in due course of time some of their descendents also diversified into other vocations.
Being mostly traders and professionals the members of the Indian diaspora including the Jains formed a "middleman minority" in East Africa. They faced racial discrimination in East African countries not only from the White settlers but also from the native Africans, particularly during the latter phase of their national independence movements. Consequently many Indians chose to migrate to Britain, Canada, the United States and other countries. In 1972 the Ugandan dictator Idi Amin expelled about 70,000 Indians. Unfortunately we do not know precisely as to how many Jains were affected by these moves and where and when they migrated. A recent report suggests that there were at least 13,000 Jains living in Kenya in 2003; the vast majority being concentrated in the capital city Nairobi and the rest living in Mombasa, Kisumu, Thika, Eldoret, Nakuru and Kitale. Although there are different sects of Jains living in Kenya (Shvetambara Mirtipujaks, Sthanakvasis, Digambaras and a few who follow Srimad Rajchandra), strong sectarianism is absent (Shah 2003: 4). Digambars in Kenya who constitute a tiny minority have a temple called Digambar Jain Chaityalaya in Nairobi that was constructed in 1980. A Shvetambar Jain temple already existed in Nairobi since
89 Jains in India and Abroad
