Saiqa Hamid | Founder and CEO of SWAN
Saiqa Hamid is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of SWAN, a UK registered charity supporting vulnerable communities through humanitarian aid, food security, education, women’s empowerment and sustainable development in the UK and internationally.
A British Pakistani humanitarian and charity leader based in London, Saiqa has more than a decade of experience developing grassroots initiatives, supporting women and families, building community partnerships and responding to humanitarian need.
From a local food bank to an international charity
Saiqa founded the community initiative with a group of friends that evolved and became SWAN after recognising the growing number of women and families struggling with poverty and food insecurity in South London. What began as a grassroots food bank in 2012 developed into a wider network of community support and was formally registered as SWAN, Southern Women’s Aid Network, as a charity in 2020.
Today, SWAN works in the UK and internationally, collaborating with trusted local organisations and community partners to deliver practical, sustainable support to people experiencing poverty, displacement, conflict and humanitarian crisis.
Under Saiqa’s leadership, SWAN’s work has grown to encompass emergency humanitarian relief, food security, education, healthcare, women’s empowerment, refugee support and sustainable livelihoods.
Its programmes have supported communities across the UK and countries including Palestine, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Lebanon, Syria, Bangladesh, Cameroon, Chad and the Central African Republic.
Women’s leadership and empowerment
Women have remained at the heart of Saiqa’s work. She has championed programmes addressing period poverty, domestic abuse, refugee support, education, skills development and economic empowerment, while advocating for approaches to humanitarian aid that recognise women not simply as beneficiaries but as leaders and agents of change within their communities.
Through SWAN, she has supported initiatives ranging from livelihood and sewing programmes for women to education for girls, support for widows and female-headed households, dignity initiatives, refugee programmes and safe spaces for women and children.
Her approach is grounded in the belief that effective humanitarian and development work should protect dignity, strengthen local capacity and enable communities to shape their own futures.
Humanitarian leadership
Saiqa has led and supported humanitarian responses to conflict, displacement, natural disasters and extreme poverty. Her work has included programmes providing food, clean water, healthcare, education and emergency assistance, alongside longer-term initiatives designed to create resilience and sustainable livelihoods.
She is particularly committed to locally led humanitarian action. SWAN works through trusted organisations and community networks with local knowledge, relationships and expertise, while maintaining robust safeguarding, financial oversight, due diligence and accountability.
Education is another important focus of her work. Through SWAN, Saiqa has helped develop and support educational initiatives for children affected by poverty and conflict, including schools and learning programmes in Pakistan and Gaza.
Community leadership in the UK
Despite SWAN’s international growth, Saiqa remains deeply committed to the communities from which the organisation emerged. SWAN continues to tackle food poverty and social isolation in South London through its longstanding food pantry, community food provision, soup kitchens, refugee support, women’s programmes and community activities.
Saiqa believes that humanitarianism begins at home and that international development and local social action should not be viewed as competing priorities. Her work seeks to connect the two: building a charity that can respond to a family experiencing food poverty in London while also supporting communities facing conflict, displacement and extreme poverty overseas.
Education and professional experience
Saiqa holds a BA (Hons) in Politics, Philosophy and History and a Master’s degree in Understanding and Securing Human Rights from the University of London’s School of Advanced Study.
Her professional experience spans the Civil Service, higher education, charity leadership, humanitarian programming, organisational development, governance, fundraising and strategic consultancy.
Alongside leading SWAN, she has worked in higher education and consultancy and has supported emerging charity leaders and organisations with strategy, governance, organisational development and leadership.
This combination of academic study, professional leadership and more than a decade of grassroots humanitarian experience informs her approach to building organisations that are compassionate in purpose while rigorous in governance and accountability.
Building change from the grassroots
Saiqa’s leadership philosophy is rooted in service, dignity and practical action. She believes some of the most effective solutions to inequality begin within communities themselves: with people who understand the challenges, earn the trust of those around them and are prepared to turn concern into action.
That principle has shaped SWAN from its beginnings as a small community food initiative into the humanitarian and social welfare organisation it is today.
As Founder and CEO, Saiqa continues to lead SWAN’s strategy, partnerships and organisational development while championing women-led humanitarian action and ensuring that the charity remains connected to the grassroots communities at the heart of its work.