Thirty young people from Africa arrived in the Southside of Glasgow for two weeks last month to learn and understand about Scottish life and culture.

They had an action packed two weeks, which included visiting local community projects, as well taking part in activities, a civic reception, a cultural exchange evening in which there was a celebration of 200 years of the abolition of the slave act, and discussions on issues of identity, culture and the environment.

The group are 10 people from Ghana, Kenya and Uganda. They are here through the Youth Counselling Services Agency (YCSA) Belongings Project, which has arranged for 30 people from all over Scotland to partner up with a guest for the two weeks.

Prosper Amuquandoh Ahmed (24) is a teaching assistant from Northern Ghana. In his first week he and the rest of his group went to the Castlemilk based community project Community Can Cycle, where the bicycle recycling project’s founder gave an inspirational speech.

Prosper told the LOCAL NEWS, ‘After hearing him say ‘I only work to make other peoples lives better’, my whole view of life has now changed for the better and I have realized that money is not everything. My first week here has been really excellent. I love Scotland and the people are really friendly and welcoming. I would definitely like to come back to visit.’

Prosper graduated with a BA in Physics from Ghana University in 2006 and currently works there as a teaching assistant. He also teaches physics on a voluntary basis in his hometown.

His partner for the two weeks was Shawlands student Atif Aziz (20). When he went down to London to pick up the guests Aziz felt unsure of what to expect.

But Atif is mad about Manchester United, so they started talking about football, and, despite Prosper being a Chelsea supporter, they became good friends through the language of football.

Atif said, ‘This has been really great because I have learnt a lot about Ghana and what life is like there. Prosper is an easy going and very likable person and this is why we have become really good friends. When he leaves we will definitely keep in touch.’

Irfan Rabbani, Pollokshields Councillor and Advocacy Project Coordinator at YCSA said, ‘This is an excellent exchange programme which allows young people from a variety of backgrounds in Glasgow to get involved. It also allows our guests from the three different countries in Africa to sample first hand the rich diversity that is our city.’

Belongings was created to develop leadership in young people by exploring culture and identity to promote intercultural dialogue, generating shared understanding between individuals and communities in Africa and the UK.

The three year project will end in 2009. Around 400 people aged from 18-25, half from Africa and half from the UK, are involved. There are 11 countries involved including Britain.

Umar Ansari Youth Services Manager at the YCSA said, ‘There were originally 100 people who came over from Africa to London as part of the exchange group. 70 of them were sent to England and the remaining 30 came up to Glasgow. They were then paired up with 30 youths from Scotland and you can imagine how hectic it has been. However, the best thing will be the return exchange trip to Africa, which should be at the end of the year.’