A Brief History of PolioPlus
Posted by Lori Palmer
PolioPlus, the most ambitious program in Rotary's history, is the volunteer arm of the global partnership dedicated to eradicating polio. For more than 20 years, Rotary has led the private sector in the global effort to rid the world of this crippling disease. Today, PolioPlus and its role in the initiative is recognized worldwide as a model of public-private cooperation in pursuit of a humanitarian goal.
Since PolioPlus began in 1985, Rotary's vast network of 1.2 million members has contributed money, volunteer time, and networking expertise to the polio eradication effort.
- Rotary's financial contributions to the global polio eradication effort will reach nearly US$650 million by the time the world is certified polio-free.
- Rotary's leadership, beginning in 1985, inspired the World Health Assembly to pass a resolution to eradicate polio, which paved the way for the formation of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative in 1988.
- Thousands of Rotarians around the world have volunteered during National Immunization Days to immunize children.
- The PolioPlus program helps Rotary fund operational costs, such as transportation, vaccine delivery, social mobilization, and training of health workers, and support surveillance activities. Read more about what happens before, during, and after a National Immunization Day (NID).
- Rotarians work to encourage both donor and polio-affected governments to commit the political and financial resources needed to eradicate polio.
Source: Rotary.org.