Rotary Votes $6.9m For Immunization

On the heels of historic success against polio in Nigeria and across the continent of Africa, Rotary has donated an additional $6.9 million to boost Nigeria’s immunization activities and surveillance spearheaded by the Global polio Eradication Initiative.
In a Press Release by the African Press Organization (APO) on behalf of Rotary this was the year when three became two, with the World Health organisation (WHO) removing Nigeria from the list of polio endemic countries leaving just Afghanistan and Pakistan remaining.
With no case of wild polio virus (WPV) reported since July 24 2014, more than a year  has passed with no samples testing positive for WPV across the country. This achievement was a tribute to the hardwork of countless health care workers traditional leaders, over 400,000 volunteers and the government who collectively managed to turn the programme  in Nigeria around by reaching over 45 million children repeatedly with polio is vaccines.
According to the report “polio is on track to become the second human disease ever to be eliminated from the world (with small pox as the first). To data, rotary has helped 194 countries stop the transmission of polio through the mass immunization of children. Rotary’s new funding commitment, announced in advance of the October 24 observance of World Polio Day 2015, targets countries where children remain at risk of contracting this incurable, but vaccine preventable disease”. The chairman, Rotary’s Nigeria National Polio plus “committee, Tunji Funsho said as we celebrate world polio Day in a time.
When we have been removed from the list of polio endemic countries, we must remain vigilant and ensure that all children are immunized against polio until Nigeria is certified polio free and indeed the world is certified polio fee. No child is safe from the polio virus until no more polio virus exists on this planet.
The report which revealed that Rotary has so for contributed $26.8m to African countries to ensure that the disease never returns to the continent said also that outside Africa grants of 6.7 million has been donated for polio endemic Pakistan, $400,000 to Irag and $5.3 million to India saying in total, Rotary gives $40.4 million to end polio world wide.
It would be noted that Rotary, in partnership with UNICEF and the WHO has provided grant funding to polio eradiation initiative as well as working with the government and Rotary members in polio-affected and high rikt countries to plan and carry out immunization activities.