Zemenay Asfaw Workneh

Zemenay Asfaw Workneh is an Ethiopian humanitarian leader and the founder of Sew Le Sew, a community-based initiative she launched in 2017 to safeguard people at the highest risk of preventable death and extreme neglect in Jimma, Ethiopia. Guided by an unwavering commitment to human dignity and the conviction that no life should ever be dismissed as unworthy of care, Zemenay has created a community-powered safety net for abandoned newborns, elderly people without family support, and individuals living with severe mental illness—populations that often fall completely outside formal government attention and social protection systems.

Sew Le Sew did not begin as a shelter but as a personal mission driven by urgency and compassion. Operating primarily from her family home used as an organizational headquarters, Zemenay built a hub for emergency coordination. From this base she organized rescues, facilitated medical referrals, gathered essential supplies, and convened volunteers and local partners. Her home became the administrative center from which she mobilized rapid responses and coordinated pathways to safe placements and care.

From the earliest days, Zemenay relied on extremely limited resources but exceptional community solidarity. She went door-to-door seeking infant formula, medicines, blankets, and food, and she cultivated a network of small, consistent donors who contributed what they could. Local shopkeepers offered supplies, neighbors shared what they had, and frontline workers contacted her when a vulnerable person was discovered in danger. This grassroots ecosystem of shared responsibility became the backbone of Sew Le Sew’s operations.

Zemenay personally oversees every case that comes through the organization. When abandoned newborns are reported, she coordinates immediate recovery and works with community institutions to place infants in safe, long-term environments, facilitating legal adoptions or family reunifications whenever possible. Her efforts ensure that rescued children not only survive the acute crisis but enter stable households where they can grow and thrive.

For elderly individuals lacking support, Zemenay identifies supervised placements and seeks opportunities to reconnect them with relatives who may have lost contact. For individuals experiencing severe mental illness—a group often exposed to violence, exploitation, and environmental hazards—she mobilizes community contributions to secure temporary accommodation and the supervision necessary to help them regain stability.

Despite its limited finances, Sew Le Sew has had a broad and measurable impact. Local and national media frequently highlight her work, portraying her as a principled and trusted caregiver who has stepped into critical gaps left by state institutions and overwhelmed social services. Her leadership has built deep community trust, and the organization that began as a modest operation in her family home has grown into a respected humanitarian presence that consistently delivers protection, dignity, and hope.

Zemenay’s story also reflects a broader and increasingly visible trend across low-resource settings: where state institutions and international governments struggle to keep up with humanitarian needs, local activists and grassroots organizers step forward to fill lifesaving gaps. These individuals often work with minimal resources, yet they are the first to respond, the most trusted by their communities, and the most intimately aware of local realities. Zemenay Asfaw Workneh stands as a powerful example of this movement—one defined by determination, moral clarity, and the refusal to accept that vulnerability must equal abandonment.

Her work underscores an essential truth: people like her need and deserve our support. Local humanitarians carry burdens that far exceed their resources, yet they achieve impact that far exceeds expectations. By strengthening and sustaining community-rooted leaders like Zemenay, donors and partners can enable interventions that are agile, culturally grounded, cost-effective, and profoundly transformative.

Through her dedication, perseverance, and community-centered leadership, Zemenay Asfaw Workneh has become a quiet but powerful force in Ethiopia’s humanitarian landscape. Her impact shows how compassion—when paired with grassroots mobilization and unwavering commitment—can save lives, restore dignity, and change the trajectory of entire communities.