International Perspective
To sustain this progress, and protect all children from polio, experts say $ 1.5 billion is urgently needed. Without full funding and political commitment, this paralyzing disease could return to previously polio-free countries, putting children everywhere at risk. Rotary has contributed more than $ 1.6 billion and countless volunteer hours to fight polio. Through 2018, every dollar Rotary commits to polio eradication will be matched two-toone by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation up to $ 35 million a year.
Rotary launched its polio immunization program PolioPlus in 1985, and in 1988 became a spearheading partner in the Global Polio Eradication Initiative with the World Health Organization( WHO), UNICEF, U. S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention( CDC), and was later joined by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Since the initiative launched, the incidence of polio has plummeted by more than 99.9 percent, from about 350,000 cases a year to 26 confirmed to date in 2016.
In addition to supporting the response in the Lake Chad Basin region, funding has been allocated to support polio eradication efforts in Afghanistan($ 5.55 million), Pakistan($ 12.36 million), India($ 875,000), Somalia($ 1.77 million), South Sudan($ 2.04 million), and the Democratic Republic of the Congo($ 2 million). A final grant in the amount of $ 2.25 million will support key WHO staff.
November-December 2016 55