Actually, you will see a lot of Indians especially from the mercantile community who literally thrive in such countries. You will notice that the locals in these countries will be slightly laid back and also the governance is not exactly a model of honesty and transparency, so the cunning and enterprising types are able to take advantage of both these points. They start with small scale businesses and trading, and in a generation or two are able to dominate the domestic economy completely. Example, Nepal where the Marwari businessmen completely control virtually all the economy, South Africa is another example, where Indians have a strong entrepreneurial presence. Uganda was another country where the Gujarati merchants had a virtual control over countries resources, before they were driven out by Idi Amin.