On 4 April 2007, Stanmore based charity Zainabiya Child Sponsorship Scheme (ZCSS) was presented the coveted Muslim News Award of Excellence in Education at a celebratory event at Grosvenor House in London. Secretary of State for International Development Hilary Benn presented the award to the poverty relief organisation, while praising the contributions made by British Muslims to create a more just society.
“The Muslim News Awards for Excellence celebrate the hard work and dedication of all those who are doing something practical to improve the lives of people in their community,” Mr. Benn said.
Founded by The World Federation through the Stanmore Mosque in 1981, Zainabiya Child Sponsorship Scheme has provided education and literacy programmes to more than 50,000 children in South Asia. From its humble roots sponsoring nine children in Karachi, Pakistan, ZCSS now boasts thousands of successful graduates with completed O levels and A levels. Currently, ZCSS provides sponsorship for 13,000 students in Bangladesh, India, Kenya, Pakistan, Tanzania, Thailand and Uganda, and has built six schools in India to enable 1,000 students become financially self-sufficient for themselves and their families. Today it costs £10 per month to sponsor a child through school education.
Present administrator Ms. Zainab Kassam, who started helping with sponsorships in 1985, is aided by a full-time staff and several volunteers, with the support of 25 local organizations in recipient countries. She says, “The job is so satisfying. When you get school reports of children doing well in school or learn of students passing entrance exams to University or qualifying to become a Doctor or an Engineer, you know that you have made a difference in somebody's life somewhere.”
The President of Stanmore Mosque, Mr. Kassim Manji accepted the award at Grosvenor House on behalf of ZCSS. “Education is an important tenet of Islam and all Muslims need to be highly educated,” Mr. Manji said.
Currently in its seventh year, the Muslim News Awards for Excellence are designed to celebrate the achievements of both Muslims and non-Muslims in the British society. The annual event brings together politicians, religious leaders, journalists and community activists along with representatives from the worlds of sport, culture, academia, amongst others. More than 700 were in attendance this year. Past Guests of Honour have included HRH Prince Charles and Prime Minister Tony Blair.
Muslim News, organiser of the event, is a monthly paper started by Mr. Amed Versi of Harrow over 35 years ago.
For more information on ZCSS, visit /Secretariat/ZCSS/ or email zcss@world-federation.org