Following the devastating earthquake of October, 2005, Hamid Zaman, along with a few close friends, immediately departed for the crushed northern areas of Pakistan to assess the damage and to evaluate how best to help the ravaged communities of Kashmir. It was in helping the communities in the North in rebuilding their homes and villages that the Zaman Foundation officially came into being; with the aim of being a source of support to the underprivileged and less fortunate. What set the Zaman Foundation apart from other philanthropic organizations was that, rather than just providing a lump sum of capital to the communities and then moving on, the Zaman Foundation partnered with local community leadership and made sure that they themselves were the instruments of their rejuvenation and rehabilitation, physically and mentally rebuilding themselves after a great upheaval.
Since then, Zaman Foundation has supported communities afflicted by other natural disasters, such as floods, across Pakistan.
Along with rehabilitation efforts, the Zaman Foundation is active in the building of water filtration plants in communities where clean drinking water is not available and providing access to vocational training and higher education to those who demonstrate a passion and dedication to learning and lifting themselves up.
Lastly, the Zaman Foundation also collaborates with reliable medical partners to provide low-cost and, in some cases, free, quality healthcare to those who need it.