[3] Her Egypt-based Om Habibeh Foundation worked towards the alleviation of poverty and the improvement of quality of life in the area surrounding Aswan, Egypt, and in Le Cannet she established a retirement home.

The Begum designed their villa at Le Cannet near Cannes and it was named "Yakymour", combining her nickname "Yaky" and "Amour", the French word for love.

"[2] Shortly before his death, the Aga Khan III chose a location on the West Bank of the Nile as his final resting place.

[6] The location was highly symbolic, for centuries earlier the Aga Khan's ancestors had founded the Fatimid dynasty with its capital in Cairo.

The Fatimids represented one of the apogees of Muslim culture, being patrons of the arts, architecture, literature, pluralism and scientific endeavors, all fields that were equally dear to the Aga Khan III and Om Habibeh.

Immediately after her husband's death, she oversaw the building of a mausoleum, a task that took 16 months and the help of architect Farid El-Shafie and contractor Hassan Dorra.