Hargeisa


Hargeisa is a city in the Maroodi Jeex region of Somaliland in the Horn of Africa. It is the capital and largest city of Somaliland. The city later succeeded Berbera as the capital of the British Somaliland protectorate in 1941.
Hargeisa was founded as a watering and trading stop between the coast and the interior and later became an Islamic Tariqa settlement under the leadership of Sheikh Madar and his mullahs. The city later succeeded Berbera as the capital of the British Somaliland protectorate in 1941. In 1960, the protectorate gained independence and united as scheduled days later with the Trust Territory of Somaliland to form the Somali Republic on July 1.
Hargeisa is situated in a valley in the Galgodon highlands, and sits at an elevation of. Home to rock art from the Neolithic period, the city is also a commercial hub for precious stone-cutting, construction, retail services and trading, among other activities.

Etymology

The town evolved in the latter half of the 1800s as a Qadiriyya settlement established by Sheikh Madar, near a water-stop used by nomadic stock-herders on the way to the town of Harar. It thus proposes a possible derivation of the name "Hargeisa" from the sobriquet Harar as-sagir, meaning "Harar the little" According to historian Norman Bennett, Madar named the settlement Hargeisa or Little Harar since he aspired for it to emulate the city of Harar as a center for Islamic teachings. Another etymological root for Hargeisa's name derives from the towns connection to the skins trade. Hargeisa has been a watering and trading stop between the coast and the interior, and chief amongst the goods traded were the hide skins procured from the interior to be processed in the settlement. In this etymological version, ‘Hargeisa’ is derived from hargageys, which means "place to sell hides and skins” in Somali.

History

Prehistory

Numerous cave paintings from the Neolithic period are found in the Laas Geel complex, on the outskirts of Hargeisa. During November and December 2002, an archaeological survey was carried out in the area by a French team of researchers. The expedition's objective was to search for rock shelters and caves containing stratified archaeological infills capable of documenting the period when production economy appeared in this part of Somaliland. During the course of the survey, the French archaeological team discovered the Laas Geel rock art, encompassing an area of ten rock alcoves. In an excellent state of preservation, the paintings show human figures with their hands raised and facing long-horned, humpless cattle.
The rock art had been known to the area's inhabitants for centuries before the French discovery. However, the existence of the site had not been broadcast to the international community. In November 2003, a mission returned to Laas Geel and a team of experts undertook a detailed study of the paintings and their prehistoric context.
Somaliland in general is home to numerous such archaeological sites, with similar rock art and/or ancient edifices such as the Dhambalin rock art. However, many of these old structures have yet to be properly explored, a process which would help shed further light on local history and facilitate their preservation for posterity.

The Big commune

According to traditional poetic oral accounts, Hargeisa was founded by the Eidagale clan as a watering and trading stop for passing nomads and caravans. It is also believed that in addition to the Eidagale, the Arap and Habr Yunis subclans were also amongst the early settlers of Hargeisa. As Hargeisa continued to grow, it expanded into a more permanent settlement with the arrival of the Sa’ad Muse subclan of the Habr Awal from their native coast at Berbera lead by Sheikh Madar Shirwa, widely considered to be the founder of modern Hargeisa.
Madar Shirwa was born in Berbera and belonged to the Nuh Ismail subdivision of the Sa’ad Muse Habr Awal clan. Madar arrived in Harar to study the Islamic Sciences under the top ulema of Harar which consisted of Harari and Somali scholars. Sheikh Khalil one of the ulema in Harar advised Sheikh Madar to establish a Qadiriyya Tariqa commune in present-day Hargeisa and spread the teachings he was taught, which lead Sheikh Madar and his companions to found the Big Commune of Little Harar in circa 1860. Sheikh Madar also started Sorghum plantations in the vicinity of the town to maintain self-sufficiency as well as taking care of the sick and elderly inhabitants of the growing settlement.
H. Swayne, a British soldier and explorer who traversed the Somali peninsula between the 1880-1890s wrote aboute Hargeisa in his journals:
This town is built some five hundred yards from the right bank of the Aleyadera nala, and at an elevation of thirty or forty feet above it. Round the place is a patch of jowari cultivation, two and a half miles long and a quarter of a mile broad. Quantities of livestock of all kinds graze on the low undulating hills for half a mile from the Aleyadera nala on either bank. Hargeisa is situated on two important caravan routes, one from Ogaden and the other from Harar. There are good direct camel-roads to Berbera and Bulhar. Supplies of rice, tobacco, and dates can sometimes be bought here in the trading season. Some four hundred people are employed looking after the jowari fields, and may be seen sitting on platforms, shouting and throwing stones to scare birds from the crops. There is abundance of good water in the bed of the river, and a masonry well has been built, and is kept in order by an Arab from Aden. The town is full of blind and lame people, who are under the protection of Sheikh Mattar and his mullahs.

British Somaliland

In 1888, after signing successive treaties with the then ruling Somali Sultans and chiefs, the British established a protectorate in the region referred to as British Somaliland. The British garrisoned the protectorate from Aden in present-day Yemen, and administered it from their British India until 1898. British Somaliland was then administered by the Foreign Office until 1905 and afterwards by the Colonial Office.
Berbera, a major trading harbour on the Red Sea, was the protectorate's first capital due to its strategic importance. However, the capital was moved from Berbera to Hargeisa, and the city was granted capital status in 1941. During the East African Campaign, the protectorate was occupied by Italy in August 1940, but recaptured by the British in March 1941.
The protectorate gained its independence on 26 June 1960 as the State of Somaliland, before uniting as planned days later with the Trust Territory of Somaliland to form the Somali Republic.

1960–1991

In the post-independence period, Hargeisa was administered as the capital of the Woqooyi Galbeed province of Somalia. Numerous new development projects were subsequently launched in the city by the Somali government. Among these initiatives was the creation of the Hargeisa Provincial Museum. It was the first museum to be established in Somalia since independence in 1960. The Hargeisa International Airport was also renovated and modernized, with the ultimate aim of equipping the facility to accommodate larger aircraft and offer more flight destinations.
Hargeisa campaign
Dictator Siad Barre's response to the SNM attacks was of unparalleled brutality, with explicit aims of handling the "Isaaq problem", he ordered "the shelling and aerial bombardment of the major cities in the northwest and the systematic destruction of Isaaq dwellings, settlements and water points.The Siad Barre regime targeted civilian members of the Isaaq group specifically, especially in the cities of Hargeisa and Burco and to that end employed the use of indiscriminate artillery shelling and aerial bombardment against civilian populations belonging to the Isaaq clan.

Reconstruction

After the collapse of the Somali central government and the unilateral declaration of independence of the Republic of Somaliland, a slow process of infrastructural reconstruction subsequently began in Hargeisa and other towns in the country.
Since 1991, Hargeisa has undergone a large-scale facelift. The renovations have been largely financed by local entrepreneurs, as well as Somali expatriates sending remittance funds to relatives in the region through some of the various Somali-owned money transfer operators. Most of the destroyed residential and commercial buildings have since been reconstructed, with many newer structures erected. Single-story buildings downtown are also progressively giving way to multi-story high-rises.

Geography

Location and habitat

Hargeisa is located in a mountainous area, in an enclosed valley of the northwestern Galgodon highlands. It sits at an elevation of above sea level.
The city used to be surrounded by forest when it was smaller in size, but the countryside around it still has small junipers. Near Hargeisa are the fertile Sheikh and Daallo mountains, which receive large amounts of rain. South of the city is the Haud savannah, which attracts many different species of wildlife to graze in the area.
Hargeisa is situated near the town of Gabiley, which serves as an agricultural centre in Somaliland. That town's Allay-Baday area produces tons of tomatoes and onions each month during the rainy season. The town of Arabsiyo is also located nearby, and is noted for its lemon production.
Due to its relative fertility and greenery, wild animals come to the Hargeisa area to either breed or graze on the grassland savannah. Fauna that can be found in rural sections of the city include the kudu, wild boars, Somali wild ass, warthogs, antelopes, Somali sheep, goats, camels, and many different types of birds. There are also a number of both public and private menageries. South of Hargeisa is a grassland savannah, which attracts many types of wildlife to the area, including lions and leopards.

Climate

Hargeisa has a semi-arid climate. The city generally features warm winters and hot summers. However, despite its location in the tropics, due to the high altitude Hargeisa seldom experiences either very hot or very cold weather. This is a trait rarely seen in regions with a semi-arid climates. The city receives the bulk of its precipitation between the months of April and September, averaging just under of rainfall annually. Average monthly temperatures in Hargeisa range from in the months of December and January to in the month of June.

Administration

Situated in the Woqooyi Galbeed province of the Somaliland region, Hargeisa is the seat of the regional parliament, the presidential palace and government ministries.
The municipal administration is led by Abdurrahman Mahmoud Aidiid. A member of the Peace, Unity, and Development Party, the ruling political association in the region, he was elected Mayor on 14 April 2013 by a quorum of 24 city councilors.

Districts

The Hargeisa municipality is divided into five districts which contain sub-districts
Ibrahim Koodbuur District (Northwest Hargeisa)
This district is made up of four sub-districts: Guul-Alle, Jig Jiga-Yar, Xeero Awr and Lixle
26 June (North-central Hargeisa)
This district is made up of four sub-districts: Gol-Jano, Cayngal, Durya and Almis
Ga’can Libaax District (Northeast Hargeisa)
This district is made up of six sub-districts: Mohamoud Harbi, Sheikh Madar, Waraaba Salaan, Sheekh Yusuf, Sheikh Nuur and Aw Adan
Ahmed Dhagah District (Southwest Hargeisa)
This district is made up of five sub-districts: Mohamed Ali, 18th May and Farah Nur, Sheikh Muse Duale and Abdi Idan
Mohamoud Haybe District (Southeast Hargeisa)
This district is made up of five sub-districts: Burco Durey, Sheikh Shukri, Qudhac-Dheer, Jameeco Weyn and Maxamed Mooge

Demographics

In 2005 according to the UNDP the city had a population of 560,028, while according to CIA factbook, Hargeisa has estimated population of around 760,000 as of 2015. In It is the 700th largest city in the world by population size. The urban area occupies, with a population density of.

Economy

Hargeisa is the financial hub to many entrepreneurial industries ranging from finance, retail, imports/export warehouses to gem cutters, construction, food processing, textiles and livestock trading.
In June 2012, the Partnership Fund for the private sector in the Somaliland region was launched at Hargeisa's Ambassador Hotel. Part of the larger Partnership for Economic Growth program, the initiative will see $900,000 USD allocated to 13 private local businesses, as well as the creation of 250 new full-time jobs, half of which are to be earmarked for youth and one third for women. The fund is expected to improve job opportunities for 1,300 entrepreneurs through ameliorated product distribution and investment in new technologies and processing facilities. Eligibility is determined through a competitive and transparent selection process overseen by the Partnership program, the Somaliland Chamber of Commerce, and government officials.

Transportation

Buses are the most commonly used form of public transportation in Hargeisa. They travel on a number of routes serving nearly all of the city's districts. Intercity bus services are also available, which connect Hargeisa to other major northern Somali cities and towns, including Burao, Berbera and Borama.
With the growth of urban development, several new taxi companies have sprung up in Hargeisa.
Hargeisa Taxi is another of the recent taxi firms based in Hargeisa. It has a fleet of four small compact cars and seven passenger minivans, in addition to around 19 other vehicles. GPS devices installed by the Sahal Technology firm allow the cab company's dispatch office to monitor its taxis to ensure that they travel within the speed limit. The office can also disable the vehicles online in the event of theft. Other new taxi firms serving Hargeisa include Dalhis Taxi and Marodi Jeh Taxi. Fares are inexpensive, costing between 15,000 and 18,000 Somaliland shillings per ride, with the national Somali shilling also widely accepted.
For air transportation, the city is served by the Hargeisa International Airport. The Somali-owned private carriers Daallo Airlines and Jubba Airways offer domestic flights from the facility to various other towns in Somalia, such as Mogadishu, Bosaso and Galkayo. Trips to international destinations are also available, including to Djibouti and Dubai. It has recently gained more airlines such as Ethiopian Airlines and flydubai.

Education

Various primary schools and nurseries are dispersed throughout Hargeisa. There are also several state-run and privately owned secondary and high schools in the city. Among these are the SOS Sheikh Secondary School and Abaarso School of Science and Technology, the latter of which is the pre-eminent secondary institution in the area. Abaarso School is located about west of Hargeisa.
In terms of post-secondary education, the city is home to a number of colleges and universities. The main institutions of higher learning include the University of Hargeisa, Admas University College, Somaliland University of Technology, Gollis University, New Generation University, Hope University and Marodijeh International University. Additionally, the Edna Adan Maternity Hospital offers nursing programmes to students.