By Friday Simbaya,Matukio Daima Media
MUFINDI Lutheran Girls Secondary School in Mufindi District, Iringa Region, has introduced environmentally friendly irrigation technologies in its vegetable garden, including a system made from recycled water containers and another powered by solar energy, to reduce water consumption and make irrigation easier.
The technologies have been introduced through a long-standing partnership between the school and Freie Schule Anhalt Secondary School in Köthen, eastern Germany.
The partnership has lasted for 10 years and has enabled the two schools to exchange knowledge and experience in education and environmental conservation.
The partnership has also enabled Mufindi Lutheran Girls Secondary School to receive 40 computers to support teaching and learning activities.
Speaking to Matukio Daima, the Deputy Headmistress of Mufindi Lutheran Girls Secondary School, Elai Mgaya, said the school had been experiencing water shortages during the dry season, making it difficult to maintain the vegetable garden, which contributes to food supplies for students.
“We have maintained a partnership with Freie Schule Anhalt in Germany for a long time. Today, they have visited us and installed environmentally friendly irrigation technologies to reduce the time students spend watering the garden,” Mgaya said.
He said the systems would reduce the time and effort required for irrigation while promoting efficient water use, particularly during periods when water is scarce.
Mgaya added that the school also encourages students to plant and care for trees as part of its efforts to address the effects of climate change.
He emphasised the importance of equipping students with practical knowledge and skills in environmentally friendly technologies so they could apply them in their daily lives and share them with their communities
Freie Schule Anhalt teacher Juliane Loebe said she had travelled to Tanzania with 10 students to strengthen the partnership and facilitate the exchange of experiences with their counterparts at Mufindi Lutheran Girls Secondary School.
She said the irrigation technology made from used containers had been developed after students at her school learnt about the water challenges facing their Tanzanian counterparts.
“We have come to introduce a technology that uses discarded containers to create an irrigation system that requires little water. After learning about the water shortages affecting their fellow students, our students designed a simple irrigation system to help address the challenge,” Loebe said.
She said the initiative demonstrated how students could apply scientific knowledge and creativity to find solutions to challenges facing communities, particularly those involving water resources.
Among the students who accompanied Loebe were Michael Stoesse and Milla Heubner, who participated in installing the technologies at the school.
Meanwhile, students at Mufindi Lutheran Girls Secondary School welcomed the new technologies, saying they would reduce the time and physical effort previously required to water the vegetable garden using buckets.
Agness Haule, a student at the school, said the introduction of the solar-powered irrigation system would make garden maintenance easier and allow students to devote more time to their studies.
“We are happy to have this technology because we previously used buckets to water the garden, which took a lot of time. The new system will make the work easier and help us use water more carefully,” Haule said.
She added that students had learnt the importance of adopting water-saving technologies and intended to apply the knowledge in their families to help reduce unnecessary water consumption.
Mufindi Lutheran Girls Secondary School is owned by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania (ELCT), through the Mufindi Diocese.
