Jamaame lies on the eastern bank of the lower Juba River in Lower Juba region, about 50 km north-east of Kismayo and just a few kilometres north of the equator. It is the seat of Jamaame District.

Encyclopaedia Britannica describes it as an important agricultural, commercial and industrial centre of the lower Juba. The area north of the town is one of the wettest in southern Somalia, and irrigated and flood-fed fields stretch along the river.

In the Italian colonial era the town was known as Villaggio Regina Margherita, later shortened to Margherita; the Italian form Giamama is also recorded. As elsewhere in the lower Juba valley, the fertile riverbanks have long supported farming communities, and before 1991 large banana plantations lined the river.

Jamaame's community includes Somali Bantu (Jareer) farmers who have cultivated the Juba riverbanks for generations, alongside pastoral Somali clans. Village life follows the farming calendar of the Gu and Deyr rains.

Farming is the backbone of the local economy. Maize, sesame, fruit and vegetables are grown along the river, and the town is a market for the surrounding villages, with close trade links to Kismayo.