Pharo Secondary School, Sheikh (formerly known as SOS Sheikh Secondary School or SOS Hermann Gmeiner Sheikh Secondary School ) is situated near the town of Sheikh , a three-hour drive from Hargeisa , the capital of the unrecognized state of Somaliland . The once-renowned boarding school was established in British Somaliland and at independence was considered one of the top schools in the country. It is the birth-place of Somalia's former anthem, Soomaaliyeey toosoo , which was composed by the teachers of Sheikh Secondary School. The school accepted a mere 50 students each year for the 31 years (1958–89) before it was destroyed by the Siad Barre regime, admitting 1,550 people over three decades. It was mostly destroyed in fighting in 1989, and had fallen into further disrepair during the Somali Civil War .
21-628: In September 2002, Dick and Enid Eyeington moved to Somaliland to take on the restoration and running of this derelict boarding school. Following years of closure, the SOS Sheikh Secondary School reopened in January 2003 to its first 53 pupils, 45 boys and 8 girls. Another 50 pupils arrived in September 2003. The first Somali principal of the school after the British was Ghalib Musa Afi. This school
42-407: A few months after the school's reopening they were murdered by terrorists from Al-Itihaad al-Islamiya because the school allegedly converted pupils to Christianity. Several senior politicians were educated here, including two former Somaliland presidents, Ahmed Silanyo and Ibrahim Egal . The school has strict entry requirements; only the best students are admitted. In 2019, management of the school
63-493: A multiracial secondary school in Swaziland which was opened by Michael Stern in 1963 after the introduction of apartheid laws in 1948. Many South African children – black and white, rich and poor – were educated there and the school became renowned as a beacon of liberalism during apartheid . Dick joined Waterford as a geography teacher, becoming head of geography, deputy head and finally, in 1984, headmaster. Enid also taught at
84-486: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Dick and Enid Eyeington Richard "Dick" Eyeington (November 1 1940 – October 22 2003) and Enid Eyeington ( née Pratt ; October 25 1941 – October 22 2003) were a married British couple. Richard and Enid worked as aid workers to Somaliland until their murders in 2003. From 1971 to 1995, the Eyeingtons worked at the world-famous Waterford Kamhlaba ,
105-530: Is currently double curriculum, Somaliland curriculum and IGCSE curriculum. Current school principal is Mr. Adam Muse who tirelessly works with the Students. Sheikh School offered free tuition based on a British curriculum to the limited number of students admitted to the establishment solely on merit. As a result, the privately funded school attracted the highest male achievers in Somaliland who would go on to become
126-539: Is one of the most scenic drives in Somaliland. Coming from hot and arid Berbera the climb into the Golis Mountains starts after some 46 km at the village of Laaleys . The landscape then quickly becomes greener and, via a series of hairpin bends, the Sheikh pass is reached at about 1490 m above sea level. This is followed by a short descent to Sheikh, which lies on a plateau at about 1430 m. Actually, therefore,
147-531: Is still recognizable in the landscape. Several sources indicate that Sheikh is said to contain old British colonial buildings and temple ruins similar to those on the Deccan Plateau in India. These reports appear to be from an article in a Scottish geographic journal from 1898, among others. In practice and on the internet, there is nothing of historical buildings or ruins to be found, and modern guidebooks describe
168-429: The 45 boys and 8 girls who started at the school in 2003 had previously been denied any education by the civil war and the interclan fighting that followed it in this war-torn country. Another 50 pupils arrived in September 2003. The Eyeingtons were gunned down as they watched television at their home in the compound of the recently reopened school. Two weeks before their murders, Italian humanitarian Annalena Tonelli
189-574: The Golis Mountains are not a mountain range, but the jagged northern edge of the Somali plateau. The core of the town has a rectangular street plan. There are four hotels (MashaAllah, Daalo, the Ayaan Muniiro hotel, and the large 5-storey Hashi Baroo hotel). Furthermore, there are at least two pharmacies and several shops and eateries. Sheikh used to have an airstrip; it has now fallen into disuse but
210-557: The Lava Mountains, Mr Grant says that the lives of many students “were enriched by knowing these two extraordinary, unique and inspired individuals." Richard Attenborough visited the school when he was in South Africa making Cry Freedom and became a trustee and a close friend of the Eyeingtons. Reflecting on their life and work, Lord Attenborough said, “I have never known two people who so consistently put their beliefs into action…
231-484: The city as humdrum : mundane, boring. Just outside the city is the Pharo Secondary School. It is a large complex founded in 1958 as the "SOS Hermann Gmeiner Sheikh Secondary School" and was run by SOS Children's Villages . In 1989, the school was looted and destroyed by Siad Barre 's troops. In 2003, the complex was restored by a British couple and reopened. For this they had to pay with their lives, as
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#1732852187295252-430: The future leaders of the country. Although, a selective school that offered entry on the basis of students’ exam marks, Richard Darlington who served as headmaster (mid-1950s–1971) ensured that the student body should be inclusive of Somaliland communities (although only their male members). This Somaliland -related article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This African school-related article
273-495: The good they did during their lifetime today resonates in a multitude of hearts and minds and will continue to do so for many generations to come." In September 2002, Dick and Enid moved to Somaliland to take on the SOS Sheikh Secondary School , which is situated near Sheikh in a remote part of the central Somaliland , and a three hours’ drive from the country's capital, Hargeisa . The once-renowned boarding school
294-562: The law and so it is unclear which settlements are in Sheikh's district, apart from Sheikh itself. Sheikh has a warm semi-arid steppe climate ( BSh in the Köppen Climate Classification ), tempered by the substantial altitude at which the town is situated, with an average annual temperature of 19.1 °C. Temperature variation is limited; the coldest month is January (average 14.4 °C); the warmest June (22.5 °C). Rainfall amounts to about 466 mm annually. April - May
315-470: The newly created Saaxil region, which initially became composed of five districts. In 2019, Saaxil's administrative divisions were reorganized and further divided, this time into eight districts. In the process, Sheikh's position as the capital of its own district was confirmed; see Art. 10.1 of the Regions and Districts Self-management Law, No. 23/2019 . The boundaries of the 8 districts were not spelled out in
336-511: The region/province Sahil . It lies at an altitude of some 1430 m in the Golis Mountains , roughly halfway between the larger cities of Berbera (on the coast of the Gulf of Aden , at a distance of about 71 km) and Burao (further inland, around 60 km from Sheikh). The broader Sheikh District has a total population of about 33,625 residents. Sheikh lies on the tarmacked road from Berbera to Burao. This so-called Burao-Berbera Highway
357-573: The school, becoming the school nurse and head of hostels, as well as running the school's community services programme. Increasingly, she focused on nursing, setting up clinics for women and HIV sufferers and working with the community. The couple were passionate anti-apartheid campaigners and, during Dick's tenure, they fostered an ethos of egalitarianism, creating a school that encouraged tolerance and vigorous debate. ANC and United Democratic Front speakers were brought from South Africa, and scholarships were set up for black South African students from
378-492: The townships. Dick taught the three daughters of Nelson Mandela , who remained a close friend. His pupils also included Archbishop Desmond Tutu 's children, and the future Swazi king Mswati III . The actor Richard E Grant was also taught by Dick, and describes the couple as "completely and utterly dedicated to education in Africa". Recalling an unforgettable field trip with them to Lesotho where they found dinosaur footprints in
399-526: Was established in British Somaliland . It was mostly destroyed in fighting in 1989, and had fallen into further disrepair during the Somali civil war . By the time SOS set about restoring the school, it had been completely looted and then reduced to frameless structures standing in an open yard. Following years of closure, the SOS Sheikh Secondary School reopened in January 2003 to its first 53 pupils. Many of
420-545: Was killed in Borama by the same Islamist gunmen cell called al-Itihaad al-Islamiya . Sheikh, Somalia Sheikh ( Somali : Sheekh , Arabic : شَيخ , also known as Shiikh or Upper Sheikh ), is a city in central Somaliland (a state in the Horn of Africa that separated from Somalia in 1991 and is not internationally recognized). Sheikh is the capital of the Sheikh district in
441-682: Was taken over by The Pharo Foundation from SOS Children's Villages and the name changed. There are about 260 students (2022). Sheikh is primarily inhabited by people from the Isamusa ethnic group, with the clan eponyms of sub-divisions of Mohammed Isa . Most maps still indicate that the Sheikh District is one of the three districts in the Togdheer region/province, cf. the old 1986 administrative division of Somalia. However, an administrative redivision took place in 2002, transferring Sheikh District to
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