Eterna Alliance – San Juanillo Development Association
San Juanillo: Our Partnership with the Community Continues to Grow
At ETERNA Foundation, we believe that meaningful community development is built alongside the people it serves. Over the past few months, we have strengthened our partnership with the San Juanillo Development Association (ADI) in Guanacaste. Here are some of the key milestones we've achieved together.
-Building a Strong Foundation
We formalized our collaboration with the ADI through a Partnership Agreement, establishing the framework for our ongoing work together. From there, we expanded collaboration with local stakeholders by reaching out to private sector partners and coordinating with public institutions and community leaders through joint invitations. We also documented ETERNA's history of support in the community, creating a solid foundation for future initiatives.
-Listening to the Community First
Before defining the next steps, we worked alongside the ADI to facilitate a community focus group and a participatory SWOT analysis, ensuring that priorities emerged directly from the community rather than from our own assumptions. Each meeting was documented with clear agreements, while we continued developing practical tools to strengthen local governance.
-Community Infrastructure Projects Underway
Together with the ADI, we are advancing three key funding initiatives:
Prepared and submitted a project proposal to DINADECO for the acquisition of land designated for the future Public Security Office, including its technical and social justification, implementation roadmap, beneficiaries, and expected impact.
Submitted a municipal land request to the Municipality of Santa Cruz.
Developed a proposal for furnishing and equipping the Community Hall, to be presented to INDER.
-Culture: Supporting Music in San Juanillo
As part of this partnership, we are also supporting the community's cultural development. We submitted a request to the Ministry of Culture for musical instruments for the San Juanillo Community Band, accompanied by a detailed technical list of the instruments needed. In addition, we are organizing a joint cultural event with the ADI, which will be announced soon.
