February 21, 2025
British-Somali athletics legend Sir Mo Farah applauds Zamzam Foundation partnership with Save the Children.
Sir Mo Farah, the British-Somali athlete who won four gold medals at the 2012 and 2016 Olympics, has applauded a partnership between Save the Children and Zamzam Foundation – Somalia’s biggest charity.
“As an Ambassador of Save the Children, it’s fantastic for me to see the organisation working closely in Somalia with a respected local charity like the Zamzam Foundation to support vulnerable families affected by climate change and conflict,” says Sir Mo. “It’s brilliant when global and local charities work together to make a positive difference in meeting local needs.”
Save the Children is one of over 50 organisations partnering with Zamzam Foundation to support Somali communities living in poverty, from UN agencies and governments to international aid charities and the Islamic Development Bank. People in the UK who wish to play their part in supporting Zamzam’s transformative work can do so simply and effectively by making a donation via the Zamzam UK website.
Zamzam’s partnership with Save the Children was initiated in 2023 under the auspices of Building Resilient Communities in Somalia (BRCIS), an extensive project funded by the UK Government’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. The work Zamzam and Save the Children are doing together aims to build community resilience and reduce displacement in Jowhar district in the Middle Shabelle region by strengthening the livelihoods and local infrastructure that families depend on to survive.
In 2024 the accomplishments of the partnership included:
- Rehabilitation of nine shallow wells
- Construction of 16 new pit latrines and a community storage facility for animal fodder
- Rehabilitation of a key community borehole – including the addition of a new generator, pump, taps, water troughs for livestock and enhanced drainage
- Establishment of three new farmer co-operatives
- Employment of 233 villagers to restore 7km of damaged irrigation canals
- A land degradation surveillance exercise to help improve land management and productivity
- Training for farmers in climate-smart agricultural techniques, water and social conservation, and restoring fragile ecosystems.
Another Zamzam partner in the BRCIS project is the International Rescue Committee (IRC). Elise Pozzi, Deputy Director of IRC’s Economic Recovery and Development Technical Unit, spoke warmly about the experience of partnering with Zamzam Foundation at Zamzam UK’s launch event in London on February 13, 2025.
“Over the last decade, climate change has really exacerbated situations of extreme poverty and social unrest, which has impacted the livelihoods, security and well-being of the Somali people,” she said. “At the IRC we really promote a ‘partnership first’ approach, and we really want to invest in organisations that have a very strong local footprint – organisations like Zamzam, which goes in that direction.”
