End Polio

END POLIO

Polio is a debilitating disease which particularly affected Devon and the South West in the 1970s, and earlier. Discovery of a vaccine in the early 1980s in the USA provided a potential solution. A programme was initiated.

Rotary spearheaded the campaign at a time when there were over 1,000 polio cases a day, in 125 countries, paralysing and even killing children.

Today, the number of cases is down by 99.9%.

Over the last 30 years, Rotary has donated US$1.8 billion to the eradication effort, and has protected over 2.5 billion children from the disease through vaccination programmes.

Inspired in part by Rotary's volunteer commitment and fund raising success, the Global Polio Eradication Intiative (GPEI) was launched in 1988.

This remarkable partnership includes Rotary, the World Health Organisation, UNICEF, the US Centre for Disease Control & Prevention, and, more recently, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. This last Foundation matches two pounds for every pound raised by Rotary.

Despite there only being a handful of cases left in the world, continued campaigning, health worker training, and vaccination programmes are essential to stop the disease returning, and ensuring the world is certified polio-free. There are now only three countries remaining where polio is endemic.

Paignton Rotary has supported this campaign for many years and, indeed, two of our Rotarians went to India to assist in the vaccination programme. We raise funds for this project by holding events, and from personal donations.