EWB Farm & Irrigation - Mkutani School Garden

Engineers Without Borders (EWB) is a nonprofit that partners with people from countries around the globe and works with them to find solutions that will improve the quality of life in their communities. As part of the MIT-EWB chapter, a student-run organization, we are learning practices that will make us lifelong change-makers. Our team is a diverse group of engineers, scientists, leaders, designers, humanitarians, and innovators working together to create a better world, one community at a time. 

 MIT Engineers Without Borders is actively working with the community in Mkutani, Tanzania, a rural farming village. The village has one primary school that serves approximately 650 students, a third live too far away to go home for lunch during the school day. Therefore, many students are unable to meet their nutritional needs for their growth and development, and school attendance is hindered.

With your help, MIT-EWB plans to build an irrigated vegetable garden on the school grounds this coming summer! The project will include a shallow well near the local riverbank, a pump powered by a solar array, a pipe leading to a water storage tank, and a perforated pipe irrigation system. Students will also have the opportunity to hand water their own portion of the garden to learn about agricultural practices through hands-on experience. Ultimately, our objective is to improve food insecurity and nutrition for the school children while simultaneously providing an educational tool for the school. It is with help of generous donors like you that we are able to complete this work!

How You Can Help 

Your donation helps us pay for the costs of construction materials, fees for construction contractors, and travel reimbursements. Questions? Contact us at ewb-exec@mit.edu.  

What Your Gifts Could Cover

$20 covers a night of lodging for a traveling MIT student

$60 covers the cost of an MIT student’s ground transportation in Tanzania

$150 covers the cost of the water pump

$300 covers the cost of the solar array that powers the water pump

$750 covers the cost of the irrigation piping

$1500 covers the cost of the 1000-gallon water storage tank