| Total population | |
|---|---|
| 2,500 (2023) [1] | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Islamabad · Karachi · Lahore | |
| Languages | |
| Somali · Arabic · Urdu | |
| Religion | |
| Islam |
Somalis in Pakistan are residents of Pakistan who are of Somali ancestry. They are a small community of mainly students as well as some secondary migrants, most of whom arrived after the start of the civil war in Somalia in the early 1990s.
The Somali community in Pakistan is very small, comprising around 2,500 immigrants as of late 2012. [1] It comprised 4,000 [1] to 8,000 migrants only a few months earlier, [2] but steadily shrunk in size as Somali immigrants effected a secondary migration to other countries. [1] The majority of Somalis are students pursuing education in various universities across the country. [1]
Besides the majority students, 535 refugees and 37 asylum-seekers were at the time also legally registered with the UNHCR in Islamabad. Almost half of them arrived during the height of Somalia's Islamist insurgency between 2006 and 2009. 10 percent were young children and teenagers, and two percent were born in Pakistan. [3] [4] They formed the largest refugee group in Pakistan after Afghans. [5]
Most Somalis in Pakistan are concentrated in major urban centers like Islamabad and Karachi. [1] A few hundred live in Lahore. [5] [6] Islamabad's G-10 sector is home to several Somali businesses and residents, and is known as "Somali Street". [5]
The Somali community in Pakistan mainly consists of students, [7] as well as some secondary migrants who arrived after the civil war in Somalia broke out in the early 1990s. [2] They are generally a young, educated community, supported by their parents who are based in the Middle East. [2] Others receive remittances directly from relatives in Somalia. [8]
The secondary migrants moved to Pakistan with the ultimate aim of emigrating to North America, Europe and Australia. As of mid-2012, most of the former were legally registered with the UNHCR in Islamabad. [1] The agency offered skills-training programs in English, primary education courses, as well as provisions to cover basic amenities and living expenses. Members of the community sought to improve the quality and consistency of these services by raising their concerns with the relevant authorities. [3] [9] Additionally, the UNHCR issued Proof of Registration (POR) Cards to the secondary migrants in conjunction with NADRA. [1] Others wielded a National Aliens Registration Authority (NARA) Card. [7] A section of the younger generation among this group was born and raised in Pakistan. [5] The expiration of the POR Cards in December 2012 saw a more expedited movement of the transient migrants from Pakistan to other countries. [1]
Somali pupils in Pakistan mostly study engineering, medicine and pharmacy. They typically return to Somalia after having completed their studies due to a lack of employment opportunities for migrants in Pakistan, [1] as well as a desire to contribute to the post-conflict reconstruction process in their home country. [10] Others have moved on to other nations, drawn by the possibility of better work options. [1]
Somali students pursue higher studies in Pakistan due to entry restrictions and the higher cost of education in the Western world. [11] They often do so through the auspices of the local Somalia embassy. The embassy provides scholarship opportunities to the pupils, particularly those in the field of engineering. Students studying medicine pay tuition costs ranging from $1,500 to $3,000 for a five-year term. [7]
A third tier of Somali pupils arrived through individuals and private offices, like many other foreigners. These parties specialize in visa requirements, processing them for a small fee. [7]
Additionally, other Somali students and foreigners in general travel to Pakistan for Tabligh purposes. They mainly migrate for da'wah and receiving religious instruction. Most such students attend local Islamic universities or seminaries with free tuition or low instruction fees. [7]
Somalis in Pakistan are diplomatically represented by the Somalia embassy in Islamabad. [12]
Various Somali-run organizations also serve the community. Among these are the Somali Students Union [13] and the Somali Forum. [3]
Foreign workers or guest workers are people who work in a country other than one of which they are a citizen. Some foreign workers use a guest worker program in a country with more preferred job prospects than in their home country. Guest workers are often either sent or invited to work outside their home country or have acquired a job before leaving their home country, whereas migrant workers often leave their home country without a specific job in prospect.
A refugee camp is a temporary settlement built to receive refugees and people in refugee-like situations. Refugee camps usually accommodate displaced people who have fled their home country, but camps are also made for internally displaced people. Usually, refugees seek asylum after they have escaped war in their home countries, but some camps also house environmental and economic migrants. Camps with over a hundred thousand people are common, but as of 2012, the average-sized camp housed around 11,400. They are usually built and run by a government, the United Nations, international organizations, or non-governmental organization. Unofficial refugee camps, such as Idomeni in Greece or the Calais jungle in France, are where refugees are largely left without the support of governments or international organizations.
Dadaab is a semi-arid town in Garissa County, Kenya. It is the site of a UNHCR base hosting 302,805 registered refugees and asylum seekers in three camps as of 31 October 2023, making it one of the largest in the world behind Kutupalong refugee camp. The centre is run by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, and its operations are financed by foreign donors. In 2013, UNHCR, the governments of Kenya and Somalia signed a tripartite agreement facilitating the repatriation of Somali refugees at the complex.
Afghan refugees are citizens of Afghanistan who were forced to flee from their country as a result the continuous wars that the country has suffered since the Afghan-Soviet war, the Afghan civil war, the Afghanistan war (2001–2021) or the both political and religious persecution. The 1978 Saur Revolution, followed by the 1979 Soviet invasion, marked the first major wave of internal displacement and international migration to neighboring Iran and Pakistan; smaller numbers also went to India or to countries of the former Soviet Union. Between 1979 and 1992, more than 20% of Afghanistan's population fled the country as refugees. Following the Soviet withdrawal in 1989, many returned to Afghanistan, however many Afghans were again forced to flee during the civil war in the 90s. Over 6 million Afghan refugees were residing in Iran and Pakistan by 2000. Most refugees returned to Afghanistan following the 2001 United States invasion and overthrow of the Taliban regime. Between 2002 and 2012, 5.7 million refugees returned to Afghanistan, increasing the country's population by 25%.
There are a large number of expatriates inKuwait, with most residing in the capital of Kuwait City. Expatriates are primarily attracted by the employment opportunities in Kuwait. Kuwaiti nationals account for 31% of Kuwait's total population.
Since its independence in 1947, India has accepted various groups of refugees from neighbouring countries, including partition refugees from former British Indian territories that now constitute Pakistan and Bangladesh, Tibetan refugees that arrived in 1959, Chakma refugees from present day Bangladesh in early 1960s, other Bangladeshi refugees in 1965 and 1971, Sri Lankan Tamil refugees from the 1980s and most recently Rohingya refugees from Myanmar. In 1992, India was seen to be hosting 400,000 refugees from eight countries. According to records with the Union Ministry of Home Affairs, as on January 1,2021, there were 58,843 Sri Lankan refugees staying in 108 refugee camps in Tamil Nadu and 54 in Odisha and 72,312 Tibetan refugees have been living in India.
The Albert Einstein German Academic Refugee Initiative Fund scholarship programme offers refugee students the possibility to pursue an undergraduate degree in their country of asylum. Through the dedicated support of the German Government, and additional private donors, UNHCR was able to support over 9,300 young refugees since 1992.
Somalis in the United Kingdom include British citizens and residents born in or with ancestors from Somalia. The United Kingdom (UK) is home to the largest Somali community in Europe, with an estimated 108,000 Somali-born immigrants residing in the UK in 2018 according to the Office for National Statistics. The majority of these live in England, with the largest number found in London. Smaller Somali communities exist in Birmingham, Bristol, Manchester, Liverpool, Leicester, Milton Keynes, Sheffield and Cardiff.
The Somali diaspora or Qurbajoogta refers to Somalis who were born in Greater Somalia and reside in areas of the world that they were not born in. The civil war in Somalia greatly increased the size of the Somali diaspora, as many Somalis moved from Greater Somalia primarily to Europe, North America, Southern Africa and Australia. There are also small Somali populations in other pockets of Europe and Asia. The UN estimates that in 2015, approximately 2 million people from Somalia were living outside of the country's borders.
Somali Americans are Americans of Somali ancestry. The first ethnic Somalis to arrive in the U.S. were sailors who came in the 1920s from British Somaliland. They were followed by students pursuing higher studies in the 1960s and 1970s, by the late 1970s through the late 1980s and early 1990s more Somalis arrived. However, it was not until the mid and late 1990s when the civil war in Somalia broke out that the majority of Somalis arrived in the United States. The Somali community in the U.S. is now among the largest in the Somali diaspora.
Overseas Pakistanis, or the Pakistani diaspora, refers to Pakistanis who live outside of Pakistan. These include citizens that have migrated to another country as well as people born abroad of Pakistani descent. According to the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development, approximately 8.8 million Pakistanis live abroad according to December 2017 estimates. According to the Ministry of Emigration and Overseas Employment, data released in 2023 states that more than 10.80 million people have moved abroad since 1990.
Tajiks in Pakistan are residents of Pakistan who are of Tajik ancestry. The Tajiks are a Persian-speaking Iranian ethnic group native to Central Asia, living primarily in Afghanistan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.
Afghans in Pakistan are temporary residents from Afghanistan who are registered in Pakistan as refugees and asylum seekers. They fall under the jurisdiction of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Most of them were born and raised in Pakistan during the last four decades. Additionally, there are also Special Immigrant Visa applicants awaiting to immigrate to the United States.
Immigration to Pakistan is the legal entry and settlement of foreign nationals in Pakistan. Immigration policy is overseen by the Interior Minister of Pakistan through the Directorate General Passports. Most immigrants are not eligible for citizenship or permanent residency, unless they are married to a Pakistani citizen or a Commonwealth citizen who has invested a minimum of PKR 5 million in the local economy.
Afghan diaspora refers to the Afghan people that reside and work outside of Afghanistan. They include natives and citizens of Afghanistan who have immigrated to other countries. The majority of the diaspora has been formed by Afghan refugees since the start of the Soviet–Afghan War in 1979; the largest numbers temporarily reside in Iran. As stateless refugees or asylum seekers, they are protected by the well-established non-refoulement principle and the U.N. Convention Against Torture. The ones having at least one American parent are further protected by United States laws.
Pakistan–Somalia relations are the bilateral relations between Pakistan and Somalia. Both Organisation of Islamic Cooperation members, the two countries have historically maintained strong relations. Somalia also has an embassy in Islamabad.
Indonesians in Pakistan are a small expatriate community.
Kurds in Pakistan comprise people residing in Pakistan who are of Kurdish origin. They are a small population consisting mainly of expatriates and transient migrants, most of whom arrived following the start of the Gulf War in Iraq in 1990.
European Pakistanis are the residents of Pakistan who are of full or partial European origin.
The Turkish migrant crisis, sometimes referred to as the Turkish refugee crisis, was a period during the 2010s characterised by a high number of people migrating to Turkey. Turkey received the highest number of registered refugees of any country or territory each year from 2014 to 2019, and had the world's largest refugee population according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). The majority were refugees of the Syrian Civil War, numbering 3.6 million as of June 2020. In 2018, the UNHCR reported that Turkey hosted 63.4% of all "registered Syrian refugees."
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