Indian diaspora and the EU—A review toward an integrated future research agenda

What the paper says

While the Indian diaspora has historical roots in Europe stemming from its colonial legacy of the Commonwealth,the contemporary research has focused on its impact in the United States, both in economic and increasinglypolitical terms. Yet, Indian diaspora is of theoretical and practical interest to the European Union (EU) due to itsmultiple roles in contributing to the economy of the “old continent.” There is limited knowledge about these complexand multilayered roles and impacts of diasporas as economic actors since most research takes a specificdisciplinary focus, for example, ethnic entrepreneurship, rather than an interdisciplinary view. This paper contributesby reviewing extant research and advancing the discussion across disciplines. It assesses the major elementsof relevance for future research by examining and discussing the evolving communities, characteristics,locations, businesses as well as the key roles and impacts of the Indian diaspora in the EU. It shows that Indiarepresents a key sending country of skilled labor to the EU; its diaspora demonstrates significant investments,entrepreneurship and business establishments while contributing to increasing trade relations.