The PolioPlus Program
In 1985, Rotary
International launched PolioPlus, a 20-year commitment to eradicate polio.
PolioPlus is one of the most ambitious humanitarian undertakings ever made
by a private entity. It will serve as a paradigm for private-public
collaborations in the fight against disease well into the 21st century.
As the polio-eradication program grew, so did Rotary's commitment and
involvement. By 1990, Rotary moved from providing polio vaccine to
children in developing countries to assisting health care workers in the
field, providing training for laboratory personnel to track the polio
virus and working with governments around the world in supporting the
historic health drive. Rotary looks to celebrate the global eradication of
polio in 2005, the organization's centennial year.
How is Rotary involved in the global
polio-eradication effort?
Financially: In 1985, Rotary was recognized by the World Health
Organization as a non-governmental organization working in the field of
international health. In the same year, Rotary set a goal to raise US$120
million to provide oral polio vaccine to newborns in the developing world.
When the campaign ended, Rotary had doubled its goal, collecting more than
$247 million. To date, the PolioPlus program has contributed $373 million
to the protection of nearly 2 billion children. By 2005, Rotary's
financial commitment will reach nearly $500 million.
On-the-ground assistance: With its community-based network
worldwide, Rotary is the volunteer arm of the global partnership dedicated
to eradicating polio. Rotary volunteers assist in vaccine delivery, social
mobilization, and logistical help in co-operation with the national health
ministries, WHO, UNICEF, and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention. Rotary's volunteer efforts were instrumental in the
eradication of polio from the Western Hemisphere, which was certified
polio-free in 1994.
Rotary in action
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In 1999, more than 100,000 Indian Rotary members and their families
joined the government of India in immunizing more than 130 million
children on one day, signaling the largest public health event ever in
the world.
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In 1996 and 1997, Rotarians in Angola led a campaign to solicit
corporate jets, helicopters, and vehicles to move vaccine through
Angola's land mine-infested countryside. Additional volunteers
mobilized by a single Rotary club helped the government reach 80
percent of its target population of children under five years of age.
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During the late 1980s, 11,000 Rotarians in Peru volunteered in a
massive drive to eliminate the virus in one of the last South American
countries in which polio still existed. Rotary volunteers assisted
national health care workers in door-to-door immunization drives,
transporting health care workers to remote vaccination centers,
analyzing data, and publicizing the immunization days to raise
awareness of the final assault against the crippling disease.
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In countries where there are no Rotary clubs, like Somalia,
Afghanistan, Myanmar, Laos, and Vietnam, the PolioPlus program not
only funded vaccines and promotional materials for National
Immunization Days, it also provided on-site volunteer assistance from
neighboring countries to assist national authorities in carrying out
eradication exercises.
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After extensive efforts to eradicate polio in Cambodia, health
officials tracked the remaining pockets of polio to children living on
the waterways, who had been missed by the previously held National
Immunization Days. Rotary volunteers joined health officials in a
boat-to-boat follow-up campaign to successfully reach this population
and wipe out the virus.
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In many developing countries, methods of communication vary from
street plays to parades. Rotary members in India and Pakistan
performed street dramas and organized rallies to educate parents about
the need to immunize their children against polio.
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