Our Services
Agriculture and Environment
The JJ community is primarily an agrarian society whose livelihood is largely dependent on agriculture. The community practices a wellintegrated mixed farming system that maintained the natural ecological balance for centuries. The area is endowed with fertile soil and ample rainfall well distributed throughout the year. However, changes introduced over the last several decades have gradually tipped this balance resulting in not only the reduction of agricultural productivity but also caused the destruction of the natural resource base. The JJDA aspires to work with the grassroot community to explore economic opportunities for the JJ rural community. We plan to engage the youth through designing and implementing projects that will utilize the immense surface and ground water potential by capitalizing on competitive advantage of the area for crop production and animal husbandry. In addition to the ample rainfall, the area is endowed with abundant water supply from lake Chomen and multitude of rivers, that along with fertile soil and suitable climate may allow for yearround production of various types of vegetables and fruits for both domestic consumption and export. Our association is committed to work with donor communities and the local government to unveil this potential and empower the youth to engage in sustainable productive economic activities to improve livelihoods while at the same time safeguarding the ecosys
Social Services
The Social Services component of our activity focuses on fostering a sense of community and support among members of JJDA. We strive to create a strong sense of community and togetherness among members of our association through organizing and facilitating events that encourage social interactions, blending of diverse social circles, and networking. These activities are aimed at laying the foundation for solidarity among our community members, both at home and in the diaspora. We aspire to create a strong support network and communication channel, serving as a social platform to bring our community members to stand together in both favorable and challenging times. The key areas of focus for the social service wing of the association includes community building, enhancing partnership between members of the group and with other sister associations and donor communities. We also strive to facilitate network and communication, advocacy and mutual empowerment, resource mobilization and skill development to support members of the community. Added to that, we aim to establish an effective platform for crises responses. Overall, this wing of the association serves as a hub for drawing members of the community together to foster unity and facilitate means for mutual support and solidarity. It will help bridge the diaspora community with the home region and work along with other directorates to facilitate the development and implementation of health, educational and development activities.
Education and Development Services
Besides empowerment and mutual support of members, JJDA actively engages in education and development endeavors to serve the Oromo community in general, and that of JJ in particular. The JJDA will work with local communities to identify critical educational and development needs and strive to make interventions. Some of the potential areas of emphasis include:
1.Providing trainings on preventive health care and medical treatment –We strive to change this course through creating awareness, supporting local health service and through direct medical intervention where possible.
2. Exploring development opportunities to benefit local community – We will work with local community, especially the youth group, provide them with tools and ideas to spur economic development based on locally available resources.
3. Supporting education at all levels (primary, secondary and college) – the JJDA will work with donor communities to facilitate the acquisition of educational materials and support outstanding students that lack the financial means to navigate through the school, especially college girls. 4.Our research focus deals with solving problems of health and wellbeing of the local JJ communities using local leadership and community participation. Our currently targeted interventions are compiled under:
a. Preventive and therapeutic health screening interventions
b. Environmental and agricultural support to the JJ local community
c. Situation analysis and support to students and education institutions in JJ
d. Generating research ideas and identifying sources of funding geared toward community development.
Art and Culture
As part of the greater Maccaa Oromo branch, the JJ community have amassed various cultural heritages including tangible cultures such as books, various types of art works, artefacts describing the life of ancient Oromo society, and the scared landscapes and holly sites. The community is also rich with intangible cultural traditions inherited from the ancestors and passed down to the present generation, such as the oral literature, various types of performing arts (music and songs made to reflect on specific events of the society or for reflection of personal feelings), religious rituals, practices, etc. Intangible cultures are so diverse and are of significant value in society in that they help hold communities to moral standards. Some of these cultures are in direct collision with technology and the new order of life and belief, and thus are fading fast.
The JJDA plans to help preserve and promote these heritages to the larger Oromo community and also learn and embrace other cultures. In order to facilitate this, the JJDA will endeavor to identify, research and document the fading cultures and traditions that once served as the moral foundation of the community. The Arts and Culture division of the association may organize and facilitate programs and events whereby both the tangible and intangible cultures will be displayed, tried and enjoyed including through but not limited to live performances.