Beyond Polio

Therefore, the ‘End Polio Now campaign’ by Rotary is an act of being humane. The Global Polio Eradication Initiative was established in 1988, and since then, we have reduced polio cases by 99.9%. And that is due to the wide availability of developed and distributed vaccines using the contributions and donations from Rotarians and other donors.

Eradicating a disease is not straightforward. Africa was declared Polio free in 2020, but recently they discovered six cases in Mozambique; therefore, Polio eradication is and will remain a priority for Rotary. But even as we continue to focus on eradicating Polio, we must look beyond Polio. The communities most affected by Polio face many other threats to health and lack access to the services and tools to protect them.

We must ensure that the significant investments that Rotary has made in polio eradication does not die with Polio but are used to build the health systems to deliver the services these communities need.

Health systems like a reliable supply of medicines, and vaccines, trained and motivated health workers, well-maintained infrastructure and technologies backed by adequate funding, robust health plans and evidence-based policies.

After all, we haven’t truly helped a child if we protect them from Polio, but they die from measles, malaria or ebola.

I look forward to a future when the only thing children ever learn about Polio is in history books.

Thank you, Rotarians, for humanely eradicating Polio and serving beyond self.