Inside MrBeast's 100 Wells in Africa: River Water, Mountain Hikes, and a Bridge
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The video follows MrBeast (Jimmy) and his team as they build 100 wells across several African countries, starting in Kenya and moving on to Zimbabwe and beyond. Jimmy's central claim is that giving communities clean water is a solvable problem that doesn't require a government's resources. Along the way, each stop shows a different reason the water matters: schoolchildren drinking from a contaminated river, students hiking a mountain twice a day, pregnant mothers carrying buckets to a clinic, and farmers getting through the dry season. Some stops also needed help beyond a well, including a school, a bridge, and bicycles.
The First Well and the Scale of the Project
The video opens with the first of the 100 wells, in a small village in Kenya. Water bursts out, and Jimmy says the village got "unlimited clean drinking water in less than a second." He then sets out the scale of the project: combined, the 100 wells are meant to give around half a million people fresh drinking water.
After building more wells in Kenya, the team flew south to a school system the transcript calls Nairiri. The village held a welcome ceremony when the team arrived. Jimmy jokes about his collaborator Nolan joining in, calling Nolan "the most awkward person I've ever met," and adds, "that's a lot coming from me."
Nairiri: A School That Drank From the River
One of the teachers showed Jimmy where students had been getting their water: a river Jimmy describes as extremely unsafe to drink. The teacher said students had been complaining of diarrhea and infections such as typhoid "because this is the water we've been using." The school tried to treat the water, but the teacher pointed to how it looked. "At the end of the day, life has to move on. You have to get some water anyway."
Jimmy says these children's lives are being limited, and sometimes cut short, because they are forced to drink unsafe water. For this village, he says, the team would end that right away.
He explains what the installation involves. Water from the ground is fed into enormous barrels, which are built into water towers. Once those are in place, Jimmy says, neighboring villages will have clean drinking water and also a pressurized water source. In practice, that means people no longer have to do laundry in unsafe water.
How the Wells Work and What One Well Provides
Jimmy explains how the team built its first 29 wells, after it had built 20 more in Kenya. A giant drill digs hundreds of feet into the ground, past polluted water sources, into what he calls an enormous aquifer of pure, drinkable water. The team then installs pipes so people can get water from spigots like the one at Nairiri.
He gives several numbers for the Nairiri well. It took him about a minute to fill a five-gallon drum. When he asked how much water the well could provide per day, the answer was 3,600 gallons. He says the well will cover the school's 400 children and also the surrounding neighborhood and village. He adds that the system can "basically pump nonstop for 30 years."
From this he draws his main argument. People might assume an effect this large needs the resources and funding of a large government. "But that's not true," Jimmy says. Solving this problem is possible, and he calls it something all of humanity should be working to fix.
In a lighter moment, a student asks Jimmy the secret of success. His answer: find something you love doing, do it for a long time, and eventually you'll succeed.
Beyond Water: Rebuilding a School
The team also installed a well for another village, which Jimmy says serves that village and 12 others. While those wells were being finished, they upgraded one of the area's schools. The list is long: new computers, new classroom furniture, shelves stocked with new books, a soccer ball for every student, and modern whiteboards and projectors in every classroom.
A staff member explains why the boards matter. The school had been using chalk "that made a lot of dust, but today everything is clean." Jimmy replies that it was "the least we could do."
Well 45: A Mile-Long Mountain Hike for Unsafe Water
At the site of the 45th well, Jimmy says, the community "had it even harder." To get water, people had to make a treacherous, mile-long hike through the jungle, on a steep mountain. One resident said they woke up around 4:00 a.m. to fetch water for the school. Another said it wasn't safe to fetch water there because the path is very slippery and the chance of injury is high.
While the well was being built, the community took Jimmy along the route. Residents said they made the trip twice a day. Jimmy asked whether a typical student would carry a jug like the one they handed him, and they said yes. He also asked how hard it would be for 200 students to do this every day, and they told him it could be very hard. On the way down, Jimmy remarks on how steep the path is and later says he was surprised by how difficult the hike was.
At the bottom of the trail is a spigot, and Jimmy points out that the water there is still unsafe to drink. Full jugs can weigh up to 40 pounds, which he calls "insane" for children to carry up the mountain. A local tells him the women can carry two jugs at once. Jimmy jokes that he can too, then struggles on the climb back up and admits he's too tired.
The new well, Jimmy says, is only ten feet from the school. Instead of spending hours a day getting unsafe water, people can now fill their containers right there.
Well 46: A River That Divides a Village
At the 46th well, the team ran into a problem that a well couldn't solve. The village is split in half by a large, dangerous river. Jimmy says it doesn't look like much in the dry season. In the rainy season, though, the water rises high enough to swallow the existing bridge.
That bridge matters because the hospital, the schools, and some of the villages are on the other side. People cross it several times a day, and despite the danger it is their only option. A local explained that when the river is swollen, it can sweep away people, students, or animals, and said that about three people had been lost trying to cross it in the recent past.
Jimmy calls this loss of life "insane and absolutely unacceptable" and says the team knew immediately it had to help. It began building a new bridge before moving on.
Zimbabwe: A Clinic Without Water
The team then traveled more than 2,000 miles from Kenya to Zimbabwe. By that point they had been in Africa for over a week and still had many wells left to build.
Their first stop was a local hospital that badly needed clean water. Staff said the clinic delivers about 50 babies a month, which Jimmy works out to about 600 births a year. Yet pregnant mothers at the clinic had to walk over a mile to get water and carry heavy buckets back. The team paid for a new, modern well there. Jimmy pressed the button to turn it on, Nolan confirmed it was flowing, and people started collecting water immediately. Jimmy called it "easily the coolest thing ever." Nolan was pulled into another dance, which Jimmy cuts short in the edit.
Many students in this village also lacked transportation, so the team gave all of them new bicycles. Jimmy admits he doesn't know how to ride a bike, and a teammate jokes that "Jimmy only knows how to give away bikes." In the group ride that follows, Jimmy falls behind the students and eventually hands his bike to a child.
Well 69: Solar Power for Farmers
The team kept building until it reached well number 69. This one is solar-powered and designed for the village's farmers. Jimmy says it provides more than enough water for crops and livestock, even in the dry season, without any electricity. A technician explained the setup: each solar panel is rated at 200 watts and connected to a pump that can move 5,000 liters an hour. The technician called it "basically unlimited" water for the whole village.
More Countries and a Reflection
After Zimbabwe, the team built more wells in Uganda, Somalia, and Cameroon. Jimmy says a full video about the Cameroon work is coming to the Philanthropy channel.
He reflects that time in these villages made him think about why wells matter. They bring water to farms to feed the hungry and provide clean conditions for hospitals. Most importantly, he says, they help the next generation of children live long, healthy lives and build the future of their communities. A local voice in the video says, "We await a new dawn of clean drinking water. Water is life."
The Finished Bridge and the Closing Appeal
With help from locals, the team finished the new bridge at the divided village, and Jimmy says the community can use it for the next 100 years. Voices in the video say lives have been saved, families will come together, and the worries will be gone.
Jimmy ends with a qualification and an appeal. The 100 wells will change many lives, he says, "but not enough." He asks viewers to donate through beastphilanthropy.org/wells or the link in the description if they can. He says the team is "literally not profiting a dime" from the video and that 100% of the money raised will go toward building more wells like these around the world. He acknowledges it's "weird that a YouTuber has to do all this stuff," but says someone has to, and if no one else will, his team will. The video closes on the 100th well.
This is the first of 100 wells we're going to build in this video.
Wow! Water! Water! Oh. Oh, crap.
You just witnessed a small village in Kenya get access to unlimited clean drinking water in less than a second. One down, 99 more wells in Africa to go. You're going to love this video.
Combined, these 100 wells are going to give around half a million people fresh water to drink.
And after building some more wells on the side of Kenya, we flew south to the school system of Nairiri. And let's just say they were really happy to see us.
How's it going? I was not expecting this. Thank you for the welcome.
Jimmy! Jimmy! Jimmy!
Not sure how to react. I appreciate it, everybody.
This village threw a welcome ceremony upon our arrival, and Nolan got really into it. Nolan's the most awkward person I've ever met. And that's a lot coming from me.
And after being shown around the school. Yeah. Here comes our guest.
How's it going? Are you having a good day? It's nice meeting you all. Have a good day.
One of the teachers showed me where the students currently get their water, which is from this river that's extremely unsafe to drink.
This is where your students used to get water from? Yes. This is crazy. Yeah.
Students complaining of diarrhea, infections like typhoid, because this is the water we've been using. So we tried to treat. But you see, look at it. But at the end of the day, life has to move on. You have to get some water anyway.
This situation is obviously extremely sad. These children's lives are being limited and sometimes cut short for being forced to drink unsafe water. But at least for this village, we're going to put an end to it right now.
I don't think this John's going to fit. I have a big head. Let's see if we can find some water.
It's raining. It's beautiful.
After the water comes out of the ground, it's fed into enormous barrels like this one. And once they're built into the water towers, all of the neighboring villages will not only have clean drinking water, but a pressurized water source as well, which, in short, means no more doing laundry in unsafe water.
And pull! On a scale of one to Nolan's mom, how heavy is it? Nolan's mom times two. Oh, God. I'll push you off of this.
All right, here we go. Under control.
We built 20 more wells in Kenya, and after we were done...
Bro has another well in there. Don't worry, I have more water in my other shoe.
Just so you know how we built these first 29 wells, we use this giant drill to dig hundreds of feet into the ground, past the polluted sources, and into an enormous aquifer of pure, drinkable water. After that, we spend time installing pipes so that people all around Africa can access water from spigots like this one in Nairiri.
Let's see how it tastes. Like water.
It took me about a minute to fill this five-gallon drum. How much water can this provide a day? 3,600 gallons a day.
Not only will this well cover the 400 kids at the school, but literally the entire neighborhood and village around this school can use this well.
We say thank you for the water. No problem.
This thing can basically pump nonstop for 30 years. You would think that having an effect of this magnitude would require the resources and funding of a large government. But that's not true. Solving this problem is possible, and it's something humanity should all be putting effort in to fix.
What's the secret of success? To be honest, just find something you love doing and do it for a long period, and eventually you'll succeed.
So I'm going to bring it super close. See us? Isn't that cool? Yes. If you look up, it's recording.
All right. I'm going to get close. All right. Yeah, you can see yourself.
We were also able to install a well for this village, in this village and these 12 other villages. And while we were finishing these wells, we were also able to update one of their schools with brand new computers.
How are they liking it? They really like. They like them. Glad to see it turned out well.
And we also updated the classrooms with new furniture, installed shelves and filled them with new books, donated a soccer ball for every student...
Thank you, MrBeast. Thank you for this!
And even put modern whiteboards and projectors in all of the classrooms.
Do you guys like the projector? Yes! Yes!
We were using a chalk that made a lot of dust, but today everything is clean. We truly appreciate it.
No problem. It's the least we could do.
But then when we flew out to the site of the 45th well, we realized this community had it even harder. Every time they need to get water, they need to take a treacherous, mile-long hike through the jungle. And that mile-long hike also happens to be on a giant mountain.
I wake up very early, about 4:00, so that I can fetch water for the school. We are not safe fetching water here. That place is very slippery. Chances of getting an injury is very high.
So while we worked on their well, the community took me to see how they currently source water.
You guys would have to make this trip how many times a day? Two times. Two times a day...
So a typical student would carry something like this? Yeah. Yeah. Oh, God.
If 200 students did this every day, how hard could it be? It could be very hard. Oh, oh boy.
Dang, this is very steep. We're just walking down this mountain forever. Every day!
It was actually surprising how difficult this hike was. And these people go through all of that just to get to this spigot. That water is still unsafe to drink.
This is where you guys get your water from normally. Yes.
And filled with water, these jugs can weigh up to 40 pounds, which is insane for these children to be carrying up this mountain.
The ladies can carry two of those. Oh, I totally can as well then.
And as soon as the jugs were filled, it was time to head all the way back up.
Hurry up. Let's go. He's not even sweating or anything. No, I got it. I got it.
And now, instead of spending hours a day for unsafe water,
And now, instead of spending hours a day for unsafe water, their new well is only ten feet away from the school. So they can just fill it up here now.
I'm too tired.
And so we were on to the next village where we built our 46th well, but we ran into a little problem. We found out that this village is divided in half by this huge, dangerous river. It may not look like much now, but when the rainy season comes, the water comes up this high and literally swallows this bridge.
And why this bridge is such a big deal is the village is over there, the hospital and schools are over there. So they're crossing this bridge multiple times a day. Despite how dangerous this bridge is, it's their only option.
This river, when it is swollen, it can sweep away people, students or even animals. In the recent past, we have lost about three people trying to cross this river.
This loss of life is insane and absolutely unacceptable. The moment we heard about this, we knew we had to help.
So while we started work on a new bridge that would let them reach their well, we then traveled over 2,000 miles from Kenya to the country of Zimbabwe.
We've been in Africa for over a week, and we still have a lot more wells to do.
You kind of smell. I know. It's weird. I showered this morning.
If you let me finish, I can put my arms down. Can I count on you two to finish these wells with me? Yes. Yes, yes.
First on the agenda was to check out a local hospital that was in dire need of clean water. Upon entering, we learned how big of an impact this clinic had on the village.
How many kids do you guys give birth to a year here? In a month, about 50. So 600 births a year? Yes.
But unfortunately, the pregnant mothers at this clinic have to walk over a mile just to get water and then carry these heavy buckets all the way back. However, the good news is we paid for the construction of a new modern well for them. All that needed to be done now was to turn it on.
All right, Nolan, are you ready? I'm ready. Over. Let me get a dramatic zoom in.
Nolan, I pressed the button. Is it working? It's flowing.
Do you want to go check it out? Yes. Let's do it.
I love how people are immediately just getting water right now. This is easily the coolest thing ever.
Nolan here is a professional dancer. He will join. How do I always end up dancing? What is he doing? Oh, gosh. I won't make you watch this anymore.
Besides ensuring access to clean water, a lot of the students at this village lack transportation. So we decided to give all of them new bicycles.
I know it looks like a lot of kids, but we bought a lot of bikes.
Full disclosure, I don't know how to ride a bike. Jimmy only knows how to give away bikes. Never learned how to ride one. Well, that's great.
Let's break in all the new bicycles. Three, two, one, go.
Everyone's passing me. Be careful, I don't know how to ride a bike. I don't want to hit anyone.
You want to ride it? All right, go for it, little man. Okay.
And after giving away the bikes, we continued building wells until we reached... Well number 69!
This solar-powered well is specially designed to aid the farmers in this village by providing more than enough water for all of their crops and livestock, even during the dry season without any electricity.
Each panel is 200 watts. Then it's attached to a pump. That pump can pump 5,000 liters every hour. Basically, it's unlimited amount of water for this entire village. That's incredible.
And after we left Zimbabwe, we wanted to continue to give water to communities all across Africa. So we built more wells in Uganda, Somalia and Cameroon. And if you want to see more of what we did in Cameroon, there's a whole video about that coming soon on the Philanthropy Channel.
Spending time in these villages really made me reflect on the importance of building wells, how it brings water to farms to feed the hungry, how it provides clean conditions for hospitals, and most importantly, how it helps the children of this next generation live long, healthy lives and build the future for all of these communities.
We await a new dawn of clean drinking water. Water is life.
And with some help from the locals, we finally finished a new bridge that this community can use for the next 100 years.
Lives have been saved. Families will come together. The worries will be gone.
The hundred wells we built in this video will change a lot of lives, but not enough. Which is why, before you go, I want to urge you all to go to beastphilanthropy.org/wells or click the link in description and donate money if possible.
We're literally not profiting a dime off this video. 100% of the money we raise is going to go towards building more wells like you saw in this video all around the globe.
I know it's weird that a YouTuber has to do all this stuff, but someone's got to do it. And if no one else is, we're going to do it. As you can tell, it really does change the lives of the communities where we build them.
And finally, well 100.
Oh, my God. I'm so sorry.
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