An Aberdeen activist has been made an MBE for her services to the African community across Scotland.
Bertha Yakubu has spent almost 30 years supporting African women integrating into Scotland and those experiencing racial abuse and prejudice.
She established the African Women’s Group Aberdeen in 1994 before going on to chair African Women’s Group Scotland.
‘I was lonely, frustrated and sad’
Mrs Yakubu admitted when she first moved to Scotland from Nigeria, she didn’t see many other Africans and felt quite isolated.
She said: “I was lonely, frustrated and sad – my husband was studying in Dundee, then he got a job in Aberdeen, so we moved up in 1993.
“I was going to Aberdeen Women’s Centre, but I couldn’t find any African women there, but I would walk down the street and begin to see people who were like me.
“When I found enough (African women) I called a meeting and from there, we made friends and supported each other.”
As the years have gone by, Mrs Yakubu has noticed more diversity in the north-east – previously having to travel to the Central Belt to meet other African women.
She said: “There have been changes – there’s more and more people coming into Scotland, but when we were here in the 90s, there weren’t many people.
“Sometimes I had to go to Glasgow or Edinburgh to meet with other African women for some shoulders to cry on.
“The majority of African women came (to Scotland) through the same route, their husbands were studying or working here.
“I’ve also been supporting people who’ve been suffering from racial abuse.”
‘If we live here, we need a voice’
While Mrs Yakubu works alongside other women’s groups, she feels it’s important that African women have a space to address their own challenges.
“There are people looking for jobs, but they don’t know where or how to start, so we help them fill in forms and coach them for interviews.
“We want to be able to participate in this society and if we live here, we need to have a voice, which means you have to do a lot of speaking up.
“A lot of people don’t know what’s going on so they don’t speak up, we make space for ourselves as women of African ancestry to discuss our own issues.
“Then we meet with Scottish women’s groups to find out what affects women in general,” she said.
Mrs Yakubu admits her home recently became a safe space amid those with a range of struggles from the cost of living to mental health, divorce and domestic abuse.
“My house became like a crisis centre where we raise money to help those without public funds.
“Experts come monthly to discuss mental health, divorce and women experiencing domestic violence.
“We wrote a book called African Women Speaking which was to allow to express their experiences in Scotland.
“We also have yearly activities to kind of promote those women that have achieved something, during International Women’s Day we promote those African women.”
‘Good thing, but a big responsibility’
Mrs Yakubu admitted she still hasn’t fully processed the news about her MBE but feels both grateful and a weight of responsibility.
She added: “It’s a big responsibility, you appreciate people that think you are doing something useful and they commend you.
“But at the same time, there’s a big expectation. It’s a good thing, but it’s also something you have to think about because I don’t do this work to get a big reward at the end.
“When something like this comes up, you don’t know how to react, it’s yet to sink in.”
Conversation