Jekap Omod

Jekap Omod was born and raised in Gambella, Ethiopia. He is an Anuak also known as Anywaa or Anyuak, a minority ethnic group living at the border of Ethiopia and South Sudan. Jekap is a neuroscientist and a literacy advocate. Growing up in Ethiopia, Jekap only had access to school-textbooks provided by the government. He never experienced what it is like to have bedtime stories, nor did he have access to children’s books. The only books he had available in his mother tongue were the New Testament bible, and few samples from the Old Testament. With the help of Open Hearts Big Dreams, Jekap translated the “Anuak and English” children’s books for the first time in the Anuak (Anywaa) history.

Here are the two goals Jekap is working on to achieve through the help of OHBD organization:

1. PRESERVING the Anuak language and culture here abroad and back home in Gambella through literacy. Jekap believes that the Anuak children living in the United States and other western countries need to keep their mother tongue and their culture.

2. Improving and increasing the REPRESENTATION of Anuak literacy in Ethiopia. Growing up with no access to books or reading books in his mother tongue, Jekap felt like his native language was underrepresented, unvalued, and lesser compared to Amharic or English, which were the most common languages in his region’s schools. Jekap believes that representation in literacy would boost and enhance the willingness to read, particularly for the children. He also believes that children should have access to books that represent them as a people and show their culture.