Commitment to End Polio - Week of October 22, 2007

ROTARY’S COMMITMENT TO END POLIO

Rotary and its spearheading partners in the Global Polio Eradication Initiative remain committed to reaching all children with the oral polio vaccine (OPV).

Nigeria is one of only four countries where the spread of the wild poliovirus has not been stopped. Since the outbreak was identified in August 2006, four mass immunization campaigns have been completed, and more are scheduled.

More than 70 Rotarians from the United States and Canada volunteered this past weekend with fellow Rotarians, volunteers, and health workers to administer the oral polio vaccine to children as part of a nationwide immunization campaign in Ethiopia 18-20 October.

Significant progress has been made toward ending polio in Ethiopia, which has not reported a single case of the disease this year. The country recorded 22 cases in 2005 and 17 in 2006 after an outbreak in the Horn of Africa. Vigilant surveillance remains critical, especially during the upcoming season of traditional pilgrimages that bring many travelers to the region.

For as little as 60 cents worth of vaccine, a child can be protected against this crippling disease for life. To date, the annual number of polio cases worldwide has been reduced from 350,000 in the mid-1980s to approximately 2,000 cases in 2006. Only four countries – Afghanistan, India, Nigeria, and Pakistan – are still polio endemic.

Rotary’s commitment to end polio represents the largest-ever private sector support of a global health initiative. In 1985, Rotary members worldwide vowed to immunize all the world’s children against polio. Since then, Rotary has contributed US$620 million to polio eradication, of which $7.7 million has supported immunization campaigns in Ethiopia.

In addition to raising and contributing funds, over one million Rotarians have volunteered their time and personal resources to help immunize more than two billion children in 122 countries during national immunization campaigns.

For more information about Rotary, check our local website http://www.rotaryanguilla.org or speak to any local Rotarian. The Rotary Club of Anguilla meets every Thursday evening at 6:00 p.m. upstairs at the English Rose. You, too, can become part of this excellent organization.

(source: Rotary International news)