Indians in Mozambique would be asked to make a sacrifice and remain in the country to face the dangers of continuing to do business, while the others moved on to neighbouring countries, to Portugal, or back to South Asia. Indians in Mozambique Indians in Mozambique form the sixth-largest Indian diaspora community in Africa, according to the statistics of India's Ministry of External Affairs. Roughly 70,000 people of Indian descent reside in Mozambique, as well as 870 Indian expatriates. India's links with Mozambique reach back over half a millennium. Indian Muslim traders from south India's Malabar region plied the trade routes of the Indian
Foreign relations of Mozambique years immediately following its independence, Mozambique benefited from considerable assistance from some western countries, notably the Scandinavians. The Soviet Union and its allies, however, became Mozambique's primary economic, military, and political supporters and its foreign policy reflected this linkage. This began to change in 1983; in 1984 Mozambique joined the World Bank and International Monetary Fund. Western aid quickly replaced Soviet support, with the Scandinavians, Finland, the United States, the Netherlands, and the European Union becoming increasingly important sources of development assistance. Italy also maintains a profile in Mozambique as a result of its key role during the peace process.