A new cohort of members has joined SIDA’s Diaspora Group for Global Citizenship.
The group brings together people from diverse diaspora communities across Scotland to share perspectives, build relationships, and shape decision making and action on global citizenship, global development, and racial justice. This new cohort kicks off an exciting new chapter for the group.
We know that the lived experiences, knowledge, and leadership of diaspora communities are essential to creating a more equitable and inclusive Scotland and world. By centring these voices, we can challenge inequalities, promote racial justice, and strengthen Scotland’s contribution to global development.
We’re thrilled to introduce the new members of the group, who bring their experiences and expertise to the powerful work being done by the Diaspora group. You can find their full bios here, along with the original members of the group.
Virginia (Vee) Toyi
Virginia, also known as Vee, has a background in law, policy, and community engagement and has worked in Race, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion, with over two decades of experience working across public bodies and communities to advance racial and social justice in Scotland. Her work currently sits at the intersection of race and environmental justice, exploring how climate, sustainability, and inequality impact racialised and Global Majority communities through an intersectional lens. She contributes to supporting Scotland’s local and global development sector to adopt fairer and more decolonial approaches, to become more inclusive, while promoting diaspora and Majority World-led action for global justice.
Francesca Sophia Muñoz
Francesca is a community engagement and participation professional working across grassroots, national and international contexts. Her work focuses on justice, accessibility, and inclusive systemic change, with a strong emphasis on amplifying underrepresented voices and strengthening connections between communities and institutions.
Oluwasemilore (Olu) Oladosu
Olu is a young Nigerian in Glasgow, Scotland, who founded the LOUD Foundation which is a growing online community that prioritises awareness of mental health issues and erasing the stigma behind mental health struggles. Olu also did a research placement on the gender discrimination in STEM and what can be done to engage women and young girls in the industry. He is a former member of DataKirk which is a community that helps build soft skills and broaden knowledge on information technology.
Catherine Chavula
Catherine is a lecturer and researcher at the University of Strathclyde. She works at the intersection of technology, people, and information. Her work focuses on addressing inequities in information access, particularly in resource-constrained and underrepresented contexts. Beyond her research, a key theme of her work is addressing the digital gender divide through community-led initiatives that improve participation and representation of women and minority groups in digital spaces. She currently co-leads Motokazi, an initiative to improve the representation of Malawian women on Wikipedia, and she is working collaboratively with partners in both Malawi and Scotland.
Mila Dagher
Born and raised in Lebanon, Mila is pursuing an MA Hons in International Relations at the University of Edinburgh. Having lived through Lebanon’s compounding socio-political and economic crises before relocating to France in 2021, her commitment to diaspora communities is rooted in lived experience. At Edinburgh, Mila has been an active voice in student advocacy. As Education Officer for Girl*Up, she organised panel discussions examining forced migration through a gendered lens, focusing on women and LGBTQ+ individuals navigating asylum systems in Scotland and beyond, bringing together partners including the Refugee Sponsorship Circle. She has also contributed to advocacy and fundraising through the MENA Society and the Coalition for Palestine.
Ramatu Umar Bako
Ramatu is a strategic partnerships, policy, and community engagement specialist with over 15 years of international experience across the public, NGO, academic, and development sectors. Her work spans equality, human rights, health equity, stakeholder engagement, policy influencing, and programme management, with a strong passion for anti-racism, inclusive leadership, and community empowerment. Ramatu has worked in international development with organisations including the British Council, Oxfam, Save the Children, and DAI, and has consulted for UN Women, the United Nations, USAID, and Rosa Luxemburg Foundation, among others.
Wezi Munkhodya
Born and raised in Malawi and now based in Inverness, Scotland, Wezi brings a cross‑cultural perspective shaped by lived experience in both the Global South and the Scottish Highlands. He is a procurement and supply chain professional whose work across public sector and international development settings has strengthened systems, accountability, and equitable access to essential services.
Rahab Shimuli
Rahab is a Kenyan community development practitioner and Chevening Scholar currently completing an MSc in Public Policy and Management at the University of Glasgow. She is the founder of Jalera Organics, a social enterprise addressing child malnutrition in rural Kenya, and has led programmes with organisations including BoldStep Initiative and the Safe Environment Hub. She currently serves as a Student Ambassador at the University of Glasgow and secretary of the newly formed Kenyan Students in Scotland Association.
We are so looking forward to seeing the work that the group will do in Scotland!