Pakistan's First Strategic Philanthropic Fund for Women & Children

Mobilizing $100M to transform health & livelihoods outcomes

The Crisis

A crisis hiding in plain sight

RMNCH (Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn & Child Health)

Pakistan sees ~9,500 maternal and ~250,000 newborn deaths each year, with ~40% child stunting, driven by gaps in care and service delivery

Contributed to by several factors including, weak supply of lifesaving products (e.g., maternal drapes and IV iron have limited availability and variation across areas), midwives and doctor's shortage and outdated data systems and other system level levers that restrict quality and accountability

Women's Livelihoods

Over 53Mn women remain outside the workforce and 17Mn live in poverty, limiting access to nutrition and healthcare

Contributed to by several factors including, low literacy (52%), limited digital and vocational access, and 86% women unbanked with minimal savings or access to credit; nearly 65% of women are limited to informal, low-paying sectors such as agriculture and home-based work, further restricting economic participation

Cross-cutting challenges

Fragmented financing and delivery, with ~70% of Zakat going to individuals rather than trusted orgs and many small actors piloting in isolation and failing to scale

Inefficient allocation of resources, focusing on high-cost tertiary level care over high-ROI RMNCH and significant expenditure on social protection programs (~$3Bn annually) but limited investment in poverty graduation programs

How We Work

Strategic philanthropy, not charity

Evidence First

We fund programs with proven, measurable outcomes

Catalytic Capital

Our grants unlock co-funding and build long-term ecosystems

Systems Lens

We target root causes: health systems, economic barriers, policy gaps

Local Partnership

We work alongside trusted partners with deep community relationships

Our Focus Areas

Maternal Health
Newborn & Child Health
Women's Livelihoods
Roadmap

Our Journey

Aug – Dec 2024

Emergence of Fund Concept

  • Concept emerges through philanthropic round table in Pakistan
  • Leading consulting firm approached for initial feasibility study
Apr – May 2025

Strategy Dev & Anchor Donor Commitment

  • Leading consulting firm completes 6-week study on strategy & pillars
  • Anchor donors commit $15–20MM
  • Initial board members identified
Aug – Dec 2025

Fund Operationalization & Registration

  • Fund registered as non-profit in Pakistan
  • Gates Foundation commits
  • Board members formally onboarded
Jan – Jun 2026

Continued Operationalization & Proposal Development

  • Bank account, tax exemption initiated
  • Initial team members onboarded
  • Proposals for institutional & individual donors, incl. Gates Foundation
Jul – Aug 2026

Initial Grant Approvals & Fund Launch

  • Money received from anchor donors
  • Implementation plan finalized, sent to Investment Committee
  • Formal fund launch event in Pakistan
  • Initial grants disbursed
2026 →

Fund emerges as a sustainable national platform driving improvement in Maternal Child Health & Livelihoods outcomes

Leadership

The team behind TFF

Philanthropy
Livelihoods expertise
RMNCH expertise

Board Members

WH

Waqas ul Hasan

CEO, Karandaaz Pakistan

(leading development finance institution)

25+ years experience in development finance, established Karandaaz which conducts flagship market research informing national policy and innovation

MZ

Musadaq Zulqarnain

Chairperson, Interloop

(leading textile and hosiery manufacturers in Pakistan)

Leader in Pakistan's textile industry, recognized for contributions to employment generation and social welfare; serves on boards of Karandaaz and The Citizens Foundation

OW

Osman Khalid Waheed

CEO, Ferozsons Laboratories

(leading pharmaco in Pakistan)

Leader in Pakistan's pharmaceutical sector, recognized for improving healthcare access, promoting education, and advancing philanthropic initiatives

MC

Mushtaq Chhapra

Co-Founder & Chairman, The Citizens Foundation

(one of the world's largest NGO-run school networks)

Prominent philanthropist with a focus in healthcare, serving as Chairman of the Executive Committee of Patient Aid Foundation and on the Board of Governors of The Kidney Centre

FJ

Dr. Fyezah Jehan

Professor & Chair, Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, Aga Khan University

Leading researcher in child health, with a focus on immunization, nutrition, and infectious disease prevention; serves on advisory boards for health-focused organizations incl. WHO

Advisors

MI

Mubarik Imam

Former Global Head of Growth, WhatsApp / Meta

Scaled WhatsApp from 200M to 1.8B users, worked across Meta's Health team, assisting with the company's Covid response through its frontline workers and health systems

Get in Touch

Partner with us

Whether you're a philanthropist, impact investor, implementing partner, or institution — we'd love to hear from you.