The Addis Ababa University announced that it has found a new way to remove fluoride from drinking water, a major challenge in the Rift Valley area in Ethiopia.

The University has got patent right from the Ethiopian Intellectual Property Office for the innovation to remove fluoride from drinking water using zeolite.

The innovation is part of research activities being conducted to solve problems in communities, said university-industry tie and technology transfer director with the University, Dr. Mengesha Mamo.

High-fluoride concentration is common in the Rift Valley system. Concentrations of fluoride above 1.5 mg/l in drinking water can cause dental and skeletal fluorosis. These clinical conditions are commonly encountered in the Rift Valley. The complications have no cure.

The technology will help address this problem thereby benefiting 14 million people in the Rift Valley system, he said.

The University has signed agreement with Tidewater Oyster Gardners Association (TOGA) to multiply the technology and supply it to the market, he said.

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