Niger’s government has announced it will pay three point five million dollars in compensation to people in Tibiri, south-central Niger, who were left physically deformed more than 20 years ago after drinking water with high fluoride content.
Three years ago, a court ruled that the victims should be compensated.
In 2001, the health centre in Tibiri had counted nearly five thousand children suffering from problems caused by excessive fluoride in the water between 1985 and 2000 by the state-owned Nigerien Water Corporation.
It was discovered that the fluoride content was more than four times WHO accepted levels.