Why the Arabs came to the East African coast

v  The Arabs were attracted by the booming Indian Ocean trade which would generate profits.

v  They were interested in commodities like Ivory, Slaves, animal skins, gold, and bee wax e.t.c.

v  The Arabs were driven by the desire to spread Islam on the coast i.e. the strong Muslims wanted to Islamize the whole coast and set up a Moslem Empire.

v  The East African coast was blessed with good natural habours which could allow even big ships to anchor.

v  The moon soon winds also encouraged the Arabs to come to the coast because they blew the dhows towards the East African coast.

v  Political persecutions and power struggles in Arabia forced many to seek refuge at the East African coast for example the Yorubi and Busaidi Family struggles in Oman.

v  The Arabs especially thbbe young men were motivated by the spirit of adventure i.e. they had the desire to explore unknown lands /areas.

v  The hospitality of the coastal people also encouraged many Arabs to come to the East African coast.

v  The Arabs were also attracted by the fertile soils at the coast i.e. there was a lot of free land at the coast which the Arabs wanted to use for agriculture.

v  The presence of fresh drinking water at the coast also attracted many Arabs to settle at the East African coast.

v  Religious persecution also forced many Arabs to come and settle at the East African coast.

v  The presence of highly demanded goods e.g. Gold, Slaves, Ivory and Skins forced many Arabs to come and settle at the coast and obtain these commodities cheaply.

v  Some Arabs landed at the E.African coast because they were driven by the monsoon winds.

Some Arabs were driven by bound wagon influence i.e. they migrated to the coast because they saw others and their relatives migrating.