The Pakistan International School-Aziziah was not originally in Aziziah but was in a small room at the British Embassy in Jeddah’s historic Balad district. It was established in 1959 and was initially called “The School for the Children of the Employees of the Embassy of Pakistan.” It didn’t move to Aziziah district until 1984 after occupying another building in Balad and also one in Baghdadia.
“There was a gentleman called Abdul Ghaffar Khan. He wanted his son to be taught in English and wanted to enroll him at the American school. But he couldn’t, ostensibly because the boy was Pakistani. A.G. Khan then approached Pakistani Ambassador Chaudhury Ali Akbar and they decided to establish an English school for the Pakistani community,” Principal Mohammad Ashfaq Mahmood told Arab News in a recent interview.
Mahmood, who began teaching at the school in 1976, said the original class had fewer than a dozen students — a stark contrast to the school today and its more than 6,500 students. “When we moved into this building in 1984, the enrollment was between 3,000 and 4,000. People thought the number would go down. “But all of us were pleasantly surprised by the overwhelming response. Pakistanis were excited. ‘This is our school,’ they would say and would bring students from all over Jeddah to enroll. There were a lot of attractions — a new building, new libraries, new laboratories and new furniture. The enrollment crossed the 10,000-mark some years later and we then had to add another floor to this building.”
For many years, the students came from all over the world. “At one time, we had students of 17 different nationalities. There were Somali, Turkish, Saudi, Egyptian and Yemeni students at PISJ,” Mahmood said. “Then the Saudi Ministry of Education stopped us from enrolling students of other nationalities and the number of students decreased considerably.”
Mahmood noted that the bustling Aziziah district, with its restaurants and shops reminiscent of Lahore or Karachi, grew up around the school. “I took part in the groundbreaking ceremony in 1980,” the principal said. “This entire area that now bustles with activity was simply a desert then. Those were very hot days. I remember we had to go quite a distance to fetch drinking water. There used to be a fixed water-cooler at a distance in the middle of the desert. There were no people, no shops, no nothing.”
The area soon became an enclave for Jeddah’s Pakistani community. “When Pakistanis heard about a big school being built in this district, they began moving here in droves,” Mahmood said. “Saudi real estate developers started building residential complexes. Long before the school became fully functional, there was a huge Pakistani community living in the area waiting for the school to open and for their children to be enrolled. A lot of people took keen interest in the building of the school and there was huge support from the Saudis who had a special affinity for Pakistan. We were also helped by many Saudi ministers and businesspeople who took an active interest in the building’s completion. Gen. Zia-ul-Haq was the president then and he paid many visits to the construction site.”
The Pakistan International School-Aziziah also has had a longtime commitment to education for girls. “I am biased in favor of education for girls. It is their asset and dowry,” said Salma Shah Khan, vice principal of the school’s Senior Girls Section. She has been with the school for more than 34 years. “I strongly believe that every child is an investment. It is our duty to provide them opportunities in order to let them develop their potential and shine in whichever field they have a talent. My message to the parents and students is that children must get education; they should encourage and support them — morally and financially.”
Salma Khan said having an educated population of men and women was an imperative for Pakistan. “We need an educated Pakistan to compete with the ever-changing world and times,” she said. “Those who lag behind are crushed, trampled and suppressed. As Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah said, ‘It is your first and foremost duty to yourself, to your parents and to the country.’”
In honor of the school’s 50 years of existence, several events are planned. “The golden jubilee celebrations will go on for a full year,” Principal Mahmood told Arab News. “We are involving the community in organizing various functions. We launched the activities in a small way on Jan. 3. We unveiled the school’s golden jubilee logo which we all are sporting very proudly these days. There is a big event lined up today. It is going to be a grand function.”
As much as it is a celebration for 50 years of operation, the golden jubilee will also celebrate the school’s record achievements. “All these trophies speak of our excellence,” Mahmood said, pointing to a corner lined with awards. “Our school has consistently produced fine results. In 2006, Pakistan’s Federal Board of Education named us as the best overseas Pakistani educational institution at SSC and HSSC levels. In 2005 we got recognition for being best at HSSC.”
Just as the school is a landmark of Aziziah, it has been the cornerstone of many distinguished careers. “Thousands and thousands of students have graduated from this institution,” Mahmood said. “Our students occupy some of the most responsible positions in governments and private sectors all over the world. That gives us teachers a sense of achievement for having contributed positively to our country and our host country.”
“An educational institution is not known by the grandeur and majesty of its building but by its teachers and students and the quality of education it provides,” Salma Khan said. “Fortunately, the school has the best infrastructure, the most highly qualified teachers and students who have glorified its name and brought laurels to the institution by topping in the Federal Board SSC and Intermediate exams, so it is one of the most prestigious institutions in Jeddah.”
