On the afternoon
of 26 November, the lecture theater at Natural Resources College
(NRC) was full with irrigation students and their lecturers awaiting
a presentation on irrigation technology by Africa Windmill Project
staff. The opportunity for the presentation came about after the
lecturers visited AWP irrigation demonstration garden and were
impressed with the irrigation technology.
NRC
offers various courses regarding natural resources and agriculture.
The irrigation course is relatively new to the college, having
started just a few years ago. With tight budgets and few hands-on
opportunities, students only get familiar with irrigation
technologies by visiting the much larger agricultural college, Bunda
College, or possibly by visiting Ministry of Irrigation sites within
a few kilometers radius.
AWP
shared with the students how the technologies are developed, the
amount of water they pump, the maximum effective acreage for each
pump, and the cost. Students gave feedback on the design and
implementation of the irrigation schemes. Among many good points,
they brought up the potential cultural challenges for women to use a
cycling pump. They suggested that we make a few changes that could
better accommodate the lady farmer.
At the
end of the presentation, the students had a chance to see a pedal
pump in action. The pump had to be set up without a well, which led
us to pump only a modest one meter of head. Nonetheless, the students
were able to ask questions and try out the pump, putting a practical
spin on the course material they have been studying.
We
hope that the students may have a chance to come out to our demo
garden next year to get their hands dirty with their fellow farmers
at Mziza.
