ALICANTE, Spain — While attention to detail, creativity, and maths skills might come to mind when thinking about the attributes of a good engineer, for Peter Nzabanita, senior program engineer with Engineers Without Borders USA, the most useful skills to have are networking and communication.
Based in Uganda, Nzabanita splits his time between Kampala and trips into the field. He has been with the NGO — which focuses on education and the implementation of sustainable engineering projects — for just three months, but has over 10 years of engineering practice in the water, sanitation, and hygiene space. A civil engineer by training, he’s previously worked in both emergency and development contexts with the International Organization for Migration and World Vision.
EWB helps communities build sustainable solutions for issues such as water supply, irrigation, energy, and bridges and roads, and offers opportunities for volunteers. Nzabanita oversees the implementation of projects around WASH.