Pat Richards, Jazz and Interact is 50!

 What a week!  Many thanks to one of our members, Pat Richards, stepping in when last week's speaker was unable to come at the last minute.
I always wondered what City Councillors do, if anything, and Pat seems to keep herself rather busy.  She has also been a councillor for rather a long time.
Many thanks, Pat for enlightening us and I hope you didn't leave with too many complaints from Rotarians who happen to be your ward occupiers!

I am not exactly sure what Don Lindsay is talking about here but he makes a cheerful centre piece!

Jazz at the Radium Beer Hall

About 16 people came and it was really great.  The band was good and so was the food.  What more can you want.

Golf Day

As you can see the prizes are rolling in but we must still keep looking for that illusive big prize.  Don't forget bottles for the wheel barrow.

Business Meeting

This week's meeting is a business meeting.

Historic Moments: Interact

 
Rotary News -- 21 September 2012 
 

Interactors from Marin Catholic High School in California, USA, help build a house in Tijuana, Mexico, in 2003.

         

This year, the Interact program marks its 50th anniversary. 

The first Interact club was chartered 5 November 1962 at Melbourne High School, Florida, USA, a few months after the program was approved by the Rotary International Board of Directors. The club and its 39 charter members were sponsored by the Rotary Club of Melbourne.

Interact’s name is a combination of “international” and “action.” Interact clubs are sponsored by Rotary clubs, which provide support and guidance, but they are self-governing and self-supporting. Interact is open to young men and women, ages 12-18.  

Browse the image gallery to see Interactors in action during the past 50 years. The following are a few historic facts and firsts: 

• On 14 January 1963, the Interact Club of St. Peter’s High School became the first Interact club outside the United States. It was sponsored by the Rotary Club of Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu, India. 
• The first club in Africa was chartered 20 September 1963 at H.H. Aga Khan High School, sponsored by the Rotary Club of Mombasa, Kenya. 
• The Interact program grew to 290 clubs in 25 countries and geographical areas within its first year. 
• In January 2010, the RI Board of Directors lowered the minimum age from 14 to 12. 
• In 2011, there were 13,500 Interact clubs in 138 countries and geographical areas. 

During 2012, the Presidential Citation for Interact clubs and new Interact Certificates of Organization will feature a 50th anniversary logo. Join clubs around the world in celebrating a half century of Interact by organizing activities like these:  

• Challenge your club or each Interactor to raise donations in amounts of 50 for a polio eradication fundraiser.
• During World Interact Week (5-11 November), carry out projects that involve 50 positive actions in one of Rotary’s areas of focus, such as donating 50 books to support a literacy program or organizing a community forum with 50 young people.
•  Film interviews with former members of your Interact club about how the program can fuel a lifetime of service. Use the footage to create an entry for Rotary’s annual Interact video contest. See the Interact YouTube channel for details.
• Show us how your school, club, or Rotary district will celebrate Interact’s 50th anniversary by sharing photos and stories on the Interact Facebook page. 

Toy Libraries, Education Southern Africa, the Golf Day, Jazz and Water.

Last week Nosizwe Mogasoa of Active Learning Libraries, South Africa. was our guest speaker.  It was amazing just how many "Toy Libraries" there are in South Africa and that it is part of an international organisation of Active Learning Libraries.  Many thanks, Nosizwe, for coming to talk to us.

This Week

Our guest speaker is Janos Bozsik, the editor of Education Southern Africa.  In this Matric Week it'll be interesting to hear what he has to say.  I suppose you would call the magazine a 'trade magazine'!

Jazz on Saturday
Remind me to ask who is coming on Saturday so that I will know approximate numbers by show of hands.
I've only received one email but quite a  number of people said they were coming last week.

Golf Day

The prizes for the Golf Day are beginning to come in but we only have a month to go and prizes are the big problem....particularly top prizes.  I am listing the prizes, so far, in the side bar and who has acquired them.

Also don't forget the bottles for the wheelbarrow.

We will only be able to make this an annual event if we are able to acquire worthwhile prizes.  We definitely need a weekend away at somewhere like Fancourt and air tickets if anyone has a contact for those.  Greg Smith has done so much to make this golf day a success, please support him and our Rotary Club.

5th Wednesday
Next week is an evening meeting.  Georg Knoke is looking at possibilities and we will   let you know as soon as possible.

Rotary Peace Fellow passionate about water

by Paul Engleman
Rotary Canada -- October 2012
 

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Ryan Rowe Photo by Anne-Marie Di Lullo/Tabasamu Education Fund

Rotary International on Facebook

As a child growing up in Montreal, Ryan Rowe resented his parents’ requirement that he learn a second language. “I hated having 
to learn French,” says the 2010-12 Rotary Peace Fellow, who earned a master’s degree in public health from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in May, along with a certificate in peace and conflict resolution. “I never expected that I would come to love learning new languages.” 

Rowe, 34, now speaks Spanish and Portuguese in addition to English and French, and he’s recently taken up Mandarin Chinese. Learning new languages is something Rowe does as a hobby. His official line of work – the stuff he’s really serious about – is 
water and sanitation. That was his specialty at UNC, where he studied at the internationally acclaimed Water Institute. Today he is a part-time communications officer at the institute and quenches his thirst for volunteer opportunities on water projects in Africa, with Rotary and other organizations. 

“A lot of people think the water crisis is just too daunting,” he says. “I believe if we work together and remain committed to investing our energy, our skills, and our money, we can have a positive impact.” 

To hear Rowe tell it, that blend of optimism and determination has been part of his outlook at least since college. While an undergraduate at Concordia University in Montreal, Rowe took a semester off and travelled by bus through Mexico and Central America, immersing himself in the language and cultures to prepare for an exchange program in Colombia, where he took most of his courses in Spanish.  

That bus trip, he says, is what opened his eyes to the impoverished conditions that many people face. “But instead of seeing poverty,” he says, “I saw opportunity. I’ve always had an entrepreneurial quality, and I saw how the issues of poverty related to lack of infrastructure.” 

After earning a bachelor’s degree in commerce and finance, Rowe pursued an international master’s in strategic management at York University in Toronto. He studied in Brazil, taking a third of his courses in Portuguese and conducting an independent-study project on private-sector investment in water infrastructure in Latin America. 

Rowe recalls that during his childhood, he heard tales of world travel and service projects from an aunt and uncle who are Rotarians in Ottawa. “But I wasn’t clued in to Rotary’s impact on the world,” he says. That changed in 2009, when he was living in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, and working in infrastructure development for the Australian investment bank Macquarie Group. While doing volunteer work, Rowe learned about the Rotary Peace Centers program and saw an opportunity to help address water issues with some of the world’s best experts. 

“The public health program at UNC is fantastic. This is an amazing partnership for Rotary,” he says. “Applying to the Rotary Peace Centers program was the best decision I ever made.” 

In June, just four weeks after completing his fellowship, Rowe packed up his laptop, strapped on a backpack, and set off on his latest adventure: a six-month working tour of Africa that began with stops in Zambia, Malawi, and Mozambique, where he spoke at a conference sponsored by the World Health Organization and UNICEF. He plans to visit Nairobi, Kenya, where he serves on the board of trustees of the Tabasamu Education Fund, a nonprofit that provides funding to help children stay in school. 

While Rowe continues his work for the Water Institute, 
his goal is to create a social investment fund to provide sustainable financing for infrastructure and development projects that improve the health and welfare of people in vulnerable areas.

He also expects that his career path will lead to collaborations with other peace fellows. “We’re all in the same army,” he says. “I’m following my passion, and I think that may be the most important thing a human being can do to be successful. I thank Rotary for enabling me to do that.” 

Eric Miyeni, Active Learning Libraries, Jazz and something appropriate in Vocational Service Month

Eric Miyeni was a most entertaining speaker, giving us not only a potted biography but also a background to all his books.

The Release is his first novel.  Quite a few people bought the book and he duly signed them all with a flourish.  Thanks Eric for getting up so early in the morning.  He also brought Karen Lane of Working Title with him to carry the books, the Credit Card machine and anything else besides.

This Week

Our speaker is Nosizwe Mogasoa of Active Learning Libraries, South Africa.

The South African Toy and Leisure Libraries Association was established in 1993. The name of the organisation was changed to Active Learning & Leisure Libraries - South Africa in 2002. We are registered with the Department of Social Development as a non-profit organisation - 013-842 NPO.

Our VISION is to positively promote the development of active learning toy and leisure libraries that will provide an environment of equal opportunity in support of the right of each individual (ALL) to reach his or her potential.

AIMS:

1. To promote the establishment of good quality active learning libraries, toy libraries and  leisure

     libraries for ALL.

     Active learning toy libraries & leisure libraries are services that provide members with the

     opportunity to

           (a) borrow educational and recreational materials e.g. toys, games and puzzles that promote

                  stimulating play opportunities
           (b) play with these materials on the premises
           (c) have access to play materials through a mobile toy library service

2. Develop and provide ongoing accredited training courses that will enhance the career path of

     Active Learning and Leisure (ALL) Librarians

3. Develop a network of service providers that offer training on toy library administration, the

     effective use of play materials and any other topics relevant to ALL librarians and to develop

     strategies for quality assurance of training

4. To provide information for toy librarians, for those wanting to start a toy library and for those

     interested in the use of stimulating learning and leisure library materials

5. To encourage service providers to educate communities about
           (a) how to use active learning materials i.e. toys, puzzles and games
           (b) the valuable role of age-appropriate active learning play materials in child development

6. To encourage the development of leisure libraries to serve the needs of teenagers, adults with

     disabilities, disadvantaged adults, and all other adults especially the elderly and those in prison

7. To promote the concept of the vital role of play in life for children and adults

8. To encourage the manufacturing and importing of a comprehensive range of good quality and

     safe active learning and leisure (ALL) play materials

9. To encourage the manufacture of play materials that reflect the wide diversity of cultural groups

     in South Africa and of South African life in general.

10. To encourage service providers to provide training in the making of an adequate variety of long

       lasting improvised play materials that will supplement the toys borrowed from toy libraries.
The organisation has four Regional Committees: 

Gauteng, Western Cape, kwaZulu-Natal and Eastern Cape (ECALLA)

Jazz at the Radium, Saturday 27th October 
Don't forget to let me know if you are coming.  It's open to anyone and everyone.
We also have a 5th Wednesday, Evening Meeting this month.

Michigan club gives students a chance to explore their dream jobs

By Ryan Hyland 
Rotary News -- 5 October 2012 
 

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High school senior Teri LaForest (right) meets with local TV meteorologist Cindi Clawson as part of a vocational service project conducted by the Rotary Club of St. Joseph & Benton Harbor, Michigan, USA. Photo courtesy of the Rotary Club of St. Joseph & Benton Harbor

Rotary International on Facebook

A vocational service program conducted by the Rotary Club of St. Joseph & Benton Harbor, Michigan, USA, is helping junior and senior high school students develop careers by connecting them with mentors who are leaders in industry.

Participants are selected by their schools and given the opportunity to explore their professional interests with behind-the-scenes visits to area businesses. They also meet one-on-one with mentors, who share their experiences and advise the students on how best to pursue their dream careers.

Since the club launched the mentoring program in 2008, Rotarians have put more than 300 students in touch with professionals including lawyers, doctors, a Fortune 500 CEO, broadcast journalists, police officers, and a professional football player. Two Rotarians accompany each student who meets with a professional. The students are then required to report on their experiences at a meeting of the Rotary club.

“This program leverages Rotary’s amazing network of professionals to help young people connect with their career interests,” says Jackie Huie, program chair and president of the St. Joseph & Benton Harbor club. “We have not had a vocation that we couldn’t find for a student.”

The experience gives teenagers a chance either to reinforce their career choices or to rethink them, says Huie.

Teri LaForest, a senior and a 2012 program participant, wanted to become a meteorologist. The club organized a meeting with a meteorologist at the local TV station. After the visit, LaForest concluded that that job might not be for her but that she still had a passion for environmental science.

Visit sheds light on career path

“It was really neat to be able to see the TV studio, an opportunity I would not have had without Rotary,” says LaForest. “Visiting the station actually made choosing a career easier, but tougher at the same time. I realized that I’m not very interested in the broadcast side of meteorology. The scientific side, however, I found very interesting. The experience got me thinking about possibly going into a field that combines engineering and environmental science.”

David Reimers, a second-year student at Michigan State University, met with Whirlpool Corporation CEO Jeff Fettig when he was a senior in high school. Reimers says that talking with Fettig confirmed his career choice, and he points to Whirlpool as the company he’d like to work for.

“I know for sure that business is the right field for me,” says Reimers. “In high school I was a bit naive thinking about the difficulty of actually becoming a CEO and the stress involved with the job. In college I have really tried to focus on the advice Mr. Fettig gave me, which was not to worry about your next job, just work as hard as you can at the job you have and the rest will take care of itself. If I don’t quite make it to the top I will be all right with that, as long as I have worked my hardest to get there. I now know that the only way to the top is from the bottom, and there are no shortcuts.”

Huie says the program’s success inspired the formation of the Interact Club of Saint Joseph - Benton Harbor in February. After just two weeks, the club membership grew to 60 students.

Huie says clubs from Scotland, New Zealand, India, Peru, and Japan have inquired about starting similar programs since she shared details about it with Rotarians at the 2012 RI Convention in Bangkok.

“This is a proven, successful mentoring initiative that directly links youth and communities with Rotary,” says Huie. “It’s attracting youth to Rotary and is a lasting catalyst for club revitalization, community relevance, and global membership growth.”

Business Meeting, the Lecture, Eric Miyeni, Handbags, Jazz & News from Around the World.

Last week's meeting was a Business Meeting but it was poorly attended and there were few Board members there so it was really rather a waste of time but  it was socially enjoyable!

The Wits/New Dawn Lecture

Dr Pregs Govender gave a very interesting lecture on Human Rights and the challenges to them. She was walking with a crutch through one of those silly accidents that seem to do so much damage.  She also answered questions well.  The lecture was reasonably well attended by students and academics and there were three Rotarians present.

She was introduced by Professor Vinodh Jaichand, Director of the International Human Rights Exchange who I hope will come and talk to us.

He was previously Deputy Director of the Irish Centre for Human Rights.



This Week

Our speaker is Eric Miyeni who has recently produced a new book, The Release.  He'll be talking about the book and copies will be on sale.

Eric Miyeni is a South African writer, actor, radio and television personality who's best known to television audiences for his role as Darryl Malgas in the drama series Molo Fish and as the presenter of the magazine show Zooming In On Men.

In 2001 Miyeni started a highly popular e-zine entitled O'Mandingo! and in 2006 he published the book a book based on it called O'Mandingo!: The Only Black At The Dinner Party.

In 2004 he was a DJ on SAfm's afternoon show but was fired after four months of being with the station for being too controversial after he discussed his contract on air.

Miyeni has also appeared in numerous films, including Bopha (1993), Cry, the Beloved Country (1995) and Dangerous Ground (1997).

Jazz at The Radium Beer Hall

The Social Sub Committee is arranging Jazz and Dinner at The Radium Beer Hall, Orange Grove on Saturday 27th October.  The music starts at 9,00pm and it will be a Dixieland Jazz T here is a cover charge of R60,  and we will order from the menu and eat before hand....and from the bar, of course.  I suggest we get there at about 7,30.   Please let me know how many are coming asap so that I can reserve places for us. peter@pjsfood.co.za   

Handbag Project
Katinka Vreugdenhill sent everyone an email with a complete list of items that are required.  These are the urgent ones!  We have lots of handbags but little contents!

 The Jes Foord Foundation is still in dire need of the following items for the handbags : 

• Hair combs/brushes
• Hair elastics/clips
• Deodorant
• Toothpaste
• Toothbrushes
• Small gifting items
• We are also a bit low on underwear for ladies, gents and kiddies.

Rotary news in brief from around the globe

The Rotarian -- October 2012
 

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Wheels of Hope, a collaboration between Rotarians in Nigeria and Traverse City, Michigan, USA, is providing free wheelchairs to polio survivors in northern Nigeria.

Rotary International on Facebook

Rotary clubs around the globe have many things in common, including a commitment to service. All year long, clubs are taking action to make a difference in their communities. Here’s a roundup of recent club activities worldwide:

Australia

Last year, flooding in Cambodia killed 247 people and displaced more than 200,000 families. As floodwaters receded, diseases such as cholera and dengue fever emerged. The Rotary clubs of Eltham, Australia, and Phnom Penh, Cambodia, coordinated the distribution of Aquaboxes – tanks that can purify up to 290 gallons of contaminated water – to families, medical centers, and schools.

Canada

Malaria, tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS, and illnesses caused by lack of sanitation have devastated many villages in South Africa. In rural Hluvukani, the nonprofit Kunavelela Community Project maintains a communal garden to help nourish residents affected by disease. Last year, the Rotary Club of Bowen Island, B.C., pledged to raise funds to purchase and install a windmill, water tanks, and a basic irrigation system to support the garden. Bowen Island club members, working with the Rotary Club of Burnaby, B.C., raised more than US$12,000, and the village now has a reliable water supply.

England

During an event at St George’s House, Windsor Castle, 2011-12 RI President Kalyan Banerjee spoke about the success of the fight against polio. The occasion was a charity dinner celebrating a full year without a case of the disease in India. Guests included British Home Secretary Theresa May and Ian Macfadyen, constable and governor of Windsor Castle. BBC medical correspondent Fergus Walsh, who traveled to India in February for a series on the polio eradication campaign, was the event’s keynote speaker.

Guatemala

Lake Izabal, at 228 square miles, is Guatemala’s largest lake and an important fishing area. Fisheries biologists are working with the Rotary Club of Guatemala de la Ermita and a Guatemala City dive shop called Pana Divers to improve underwater habitats by building artificial reefs. In 2010, they sank 62 concrete balls to protect shallow-growing sea grasses and to shelter food fish such as Vieja maculicaudaand Mojarra luminosa. This June, they completed the project by sinking 161 additional balls about 130 feet from shore, which should provide local fishermen with 1,500 tons of fish annually. The club raised US$10,000 for the effort through a golf tournament and barbecue cook-off.

India

Indian Rotary clubs’ work to eradicate polio is highlighted in a new book by Muriel Sukumaran, a retired microbiologist and wife of Past District Governor P. Sukumaran. “I wanted everyone to know Rotary was involved in a big way,” she says. The book, titled Microbia and published in July, personifies the microbes that cause influenza, smallpox, the bubonic plague, and cholera (in addition to polio) in a narrative format to make microbiology interesting to a lay audience.

Nigeria

Wheels of Hope, a collaboration between Rotarians in Nigeria and Traverse City, Michigan, USA, is providing free wheelchairs to polio survivors in northern Nigeria. The hand-crank wheelchairs – built and donated by the Handicapped Advocacy and Rehabilitation Center, founded in 2007 in the city of Jos – can navigate rugged terrain and are in high demand. Rotarians in Nigeria and five U.S. districts, along with the Rotarian Action Group for Polio Survivors and Associates, raised US$120,000 – including a $63,385 Rotary Foundation Matching Grant cosponsored by the Rotary clubs of Naraguta, Nigeria, and Traverse City – that has allowed the center to build 1,000 wheelchairs for polio survivors.

USA

Nearly 49 million Americans don’t have enough to eat – including 79 percent of students at Greene County High School in Georgia. The Rotary Club of Greene and Putnam Counties has launched Second Harvest to help neighbors who are struggling with grocery bills. In 2008, the program began collecting food that otherwise would have been thrown away from grocery stores, restaurants, and hotels. The food is distributed through local pantries and monthly events at the high school. The Rotarians are working with Boy Scouts, the Humane Society, and Meals on Wheels, and the program has provided more than 500,000 pounds of food to families.

U.S. Virgin Islands

In December 2010, the Rotary Club of St. Thomas delivered 49 virtual babies to four schools as part of Baby Think It Over, a program that aims to demonstrate the pressures and responsibilities of being a parent. The club raised more than $28,000 to provide the babies, which come equipped with computer chips that record how the students care for them over several days. The effort, which the St. Thomas club has sponsored since 1996, has been credited with helping to reduce the rate of teen pregnancies in the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Our Lecture, Business, Rotary Family Health Day and Rotary commits more money to Polio Eradication.

                          

The Department of Sociology, Wits University 

and the 

Rotary Club of Johannesburg New Dawn

invite you to the 2^nd Annual Rotary Lecture:

South Africa’s Democracy and Human Rights:

Progress and Challenges

Dr. Pregs Govender

South African Human Rights Commission, Deputy Chairperson

Wednesday, 3^rd October 2012

Venue:

Wits University, Southwest Engineering Building, Ground Floor, Room 10.

Safe Parking at Yale Road, Wits

Time:

5:30pm for 6:00pm

Sponsored by the Rotary Club of Johannesburg, New Dawn and the Faculty of Humanities, University of the 

Witwatersrand

Don't forget our Lecture.  This is the third one we have sponsored, the second at Wits.  It was well worth attending last year and there is nothing more pleasant than listening to a lecture with a glass of wine in your hand!

 Last week our speaker was Shane Immelman, the person who conceived the Tutu Desk and then managed to have Archbishop Desmond Tutu add his name to it!  Quite an achievement!  It is certainly an ambitious undertaking!

It was a great pleasure to see our former member Bert Ettekoven especially come to visit us on one of his flying visits from Delft.

We'll be having a talk by one of his former colleagues at one stage on the whole issue of Social Housing in South Africa.

Business Meeting

This week's meeting is a Business Meeting so we will hear of golf day progress amongst other things.  

Please continue to add to our list of Fourballs.  Don't forget to bring a bottle for the wheelbarrow and continue your search for prizes.  Don't leave it to the last minute.

Rotary Family Health Day

This is something we have to be thinking about for next year:

The Vision for 2013 and Beyond for Rotary Family Health Day (RFHD)

Because of the huge success of the RFHD for two years, RFFA and TCCAF (The Coca Cola Africa Foundation) share a bold vision to make this into a Pan African event over the next five years, with implementation in the most vulnerable countries in sub-Saharan Arica.   The program model will be a comprehensive, holistic offering of health care services that include prevention of both infectious diseases and non-communicable diseases.  RFFA and TCCAF and Rotary are promoting healthy lifestyles and are inviting other organizations to become involved.

For 2013, the three countries will be Uganda, Nigeria (Lagos) and all of South Africa.  The date of the event is May 9 – 11, 2013. 

TCCAF will be providing RFFA and Rotary clubs with mobilization funds for all three countries.  The Coca-Cola Business Units will work with RFFA to create a solid media plan for each country that will support attendance at the event and bring awareness to the people of the important free health care services being provided.

The various Coca-Coca bottlers will help by providing beverage support at the testing sites.

Delta Airlines will once again be an important support partner by providing funding and complimentary air travel.

The goals and objectives of the Rotary Family Health Day are compatible to the goals of the U.S. Government’s PEPFAR program (President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief.)   Therefore, RFFA has requested the country offices of USAID and CDC in all three countries to partner on this event by requesting the NGOs in their country to provide technical services at this event.   
 

The goals of the 2013 Rotary Family Health Day are to have 400 sites between the three countries and provide HTC and other health care services for 105,000 people.

Rotarians believe that they can make a difference in disease prevention, such as  HIV, Malaria, Polio, Diabetes and other health issues, through the large-scale, comprehensive Rotary Family Health Day initiative.  We welcome the support of governments, NGOs and private sector companies in our endeavor to make a difference in the health of the African people.

 The events is scheduled to take place from 09 - 11 May 2013. Currently the event is open for participation for Rotary clubs residing in South Africa only for the 2013 event. For that matter, 63 sites will be established to conduct the Rotary Family Health Days.

Clubs are requested to support the event and DGPRs and AGs will be available to provide support. A plenary meeting is scheduled on 20 October 2012 to deliberate on the plan of action and responsibilities. Further communication will be sent to you after this meeting.
Attached is a high level presentation on the event and the vision from 2013 and beyond regarding the event. We realize that this might be a big task for many clubs but at the same time we believe that this is probably a high level event that is in partnership and collaboration with major donors and includes government that we dearly need.
The Rotary Family Health Days are a major happening for Rotary in Africa as you will notice from Nigerai and Uganda experiences and they will be of great value to Rotary and our efforts in our region/district. Please be at liberty to share the information with your club members.

Rotary commits additional US$75 million to help end polio

 

 

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RI General Secretary John Hewko, International PolioPlus Committee Vice Chair John Germ, Canadian Rotarian and polio survivor Ramesh Ferris, and Rotary Foundation Trustee Chair Wilfrid Wilkinson at the UN event on polio eradication. Wilkinson is holding the petitions signed by visitors to Rotary's polio advocacy website.

Rotary International on Facebook

Rotary International has made a new funding commitment of US$75 million over three years to the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI). Rotary, which has already contributed nearly $1.2 billion to the GPEI, announced the commitment at a 27 September high-level side event on polio eradication, convened by United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon during the United Nations General Assembly in New York.                                      

The side event -- “Our Commitment to the Next Generation: The Legacy of a Polio-free World” -- brought together leaders of the remaining endemic countries, and representatives of donor governments, development agencies, the GPEI partners, and the media to underscore the urgent need to finish the job of global polio eradication. Although the wild poliovirus is endemic only in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Nigeria, other countries are still at risk for re-established transmission of the virus through its “importation” from the endemics. 

Ban urged UN member states to ramp up their support for the GPEI, launched in 1988 by Rotary, the World Health Organization, UNICEF, and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The partnership now includes the support of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the United Nations Foundation.  

“This decisive moment is a matter of health and justice. Every child should have the right to start life with equal protection from this disease. That’s why I have made eradicating polio a top priority for my second term as Secretary-General,” said Ban.

New donors

“Governments need to step up and honor their commitments to polio eradication if we are to achieve our goal of a polio-free world,” said Wilfrid Wilkinson, chair of The Rotary Foundation. “We are at a true tipping point, with success never closer than it is right now. We must seize the advantage by acting immediately, or risk breaking our pledge to the world’s children.” 

“The evidence is clear: if we all do our part, we can and will end this disease. But we must act quickly and give ourselves the very best chance to succeed,” said Bill Gates, co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, one of the leading donors to the GPEI. “When we defeat polio, it will motivate us to aim for other great health and development milestones.”

The Islamic Development Bank (IDB), a new donor to the polio eradication effort, announced a US$227 million loan to Pakistan, which will cover the majority of the county's polio vaccination campaign costs. The IDB also announced a $3 million grant for polio activities in Afghanistan.   

In addition, Julian Fantino, Canadian Minister of International Cooperation, announced a “Three for One Polio Challenge Initiative” with Rotarians in Canada and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Through the initiative, the Canadian International Development Agency and the Gates Foundation will each contribute to the GPEI C$1 for every $1 raised by Canadian Rotarians up to $1 million. Upon completion, the initiative would generate a total of $3 million for the GPEI.

These additional funding commitments follow action taken in May by the World Health Assembly, which declared polio eradication a “programmatic emergency for global public health.” Polio cases have plummeted by more than 99 percent since 1988, when the disease infected about 350,000 children a year. Although new polio cases are at an all-time low -- fewer than 150 worldwide in 2012 as of 19 September – the $790 million funding shortfall through 2013 has already curtailed scheduled immunization activities in polio-affected countries. If eradication fails and polio rebounds, up to 200,000 children a year could be paralyzed. 

“Failure to eradicate polio is unforgiveable, forever. Failure is not an option. No single one of us can bring this long, hard drive over the last hurdle. But together we can,” said Dr. Margaret Chan, Director-General of the World Health Organization.

Unwavering commitment

Rotary and its GPEI partners have reached more than 2.5 billion children with the oral polio vaccine, preventing more than 8 million cases of paralysis and hundreds of thousands of pediatric deaths. Rotary’s chief responsibilities in the initiative are fundraising and advocacy, an increasingly important role as the polio end game draws near. 

Earlier this month, Rotary launched a new website to garner greater support for the global polio eradication effort. More than 6,000 visitors signed a petition on the site calling for world leaders to commit additional resources to close the funding gap. Wilkinson presented the signatures on Rotary’s behalf during the UN polio eradication side event. Visitors to the site can also estimate the potential dollar value they can generate by sharing the polio eradication message through Facebook, Twitter, and other social media.

“The unwavering commitment of Rotary members has been vital to the incredible progress of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative,” said Wilkinson. “How critically important it is for the global community to seize this historic opportunity before us to end polio now."