The general objective of this research is concerned with the study of the nature of communityrnparticipation in Hadiya Deployment Association (HDA) in South Nation Nationalities andrnPeoples Region (SNNPR), Hadiya zone. Under the general objective, it attempted to explorernthe lIIode alld level oj the comlllullity participation ill different stages oj local development activities;rnassess the mechanisms or techniques of community engagement in various organizationalrnmembership structures; and identifY the challenges or barriers which are impeding thernattainment of real community participation in HDA.rnTo meet the above oNectives, the researcher employed more of qualitative data collectionrnapproaches. Both primC/ly and secondary data sources were used in gathering pertinentrninformation. The techniques of collecting primary data includes in-depth interviews with fivernbranch office coordinators and the manager of the HDA; focus group discussion wasrnconducted with the board of trustees and household survey with the sample respondents wererncarried out_ Multiple stage samplings were used for the selection of the survey area where asrnsimple random and purposive sampling methods were employed for pri111C/1y data collection.rnGenerally, the study found out that, participation level of the community in local developmentrnactivities of HDA is low. But, from all membership structures (students, farmers, traders,rnsalaried employees, house wives, unemployed and pensioners) of the DA, participation level ofrnthe farm ers is very high but velY low for house wives, unemployed and pensioner groups of therncommunity. [n project stages, the grass root community participates better in implementationrnstage but less in problem identification, planning and monitoring and evaluation stages. Therncommunity members participate in different decision-making and implementation stagesrnbeginning ji-om an individual mode up to involvement in general assembly throughrncontribution of ideas, cash, material, land and other resources which could be required by thernDA. For community engagement, the DA employs printed materials, telephone lines, radio,rnconducting public forums and other door to door contacts. However, the realization of activerncommunity participation in HDA has been impeded by both internal (organ izational) andrnexternal challenges.rnHence, to make the realization of cOllllllunity participation in Hadiya Development Associationrnto be active, recommendations are made focusing on understanding level of the community,rncommunication mechanisms of the DA, arrangement of community forums, human resourcernallocations, transparency of the DA, coordination with the local institutiolls, and strategies tornbe developed easily to reach out all community groups for resource mobilization.