Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
political forces to ensure appropriate funds and action throughout a campaign that
has lasted more than 20 years. that rotary International has been able to sustain
its high levels of performance is a testament to the strengths of including such an
organisation in global initiatives. It certainly raises the question of what these specific
capabilities are and how to leverage them further.
The Rotary PolioPlus Programme
Since 1985, rotary's (2008a) PolioPlus programme has raised funds and contributed
volunteer time and networking expertise to eradicate polio. to date more than 2 billion
children worldwide have been immunised (International PolioPlus committee 2008).
In 2007, the bill and Melinda Gates Foundation contributed US$100 million to the
programme, which rotary committed to match so that it will have raised a total of
more than US$800 million (Hearn and nixon 2007). these rotary contributions not
only signify dollars but also represent the development of an effective system of
delivery, social mobilisation, and thinking through the problems that appeared along
the way of the campaign.
rotary International's involvement with polio began in 1979, when it put forth
a five-year plan to deliver the polio vaccine to 5 million children in the Philippines
through its local clubs. Shortly thereafter, this project, under the rotary Health,
Hunger, and Humanity Program, was expanded to include Haiti, bolivia, Morocco,
Sierra leone, and cambodia (Grand Prairie Metro rotary club 2005). this activity
was happening alongside the launch in 1974 of the World Health Organization's
(wHo) Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI) to combat measles, diphtheria,
pertussis, tetanus, tuberculosis, and polio. as well, in 1979 the world was declared
free of smallpox, the first disease to be eradicated by humankind. Thus, there was
much action, enthusiasm, and hopefulness for being able to achieve a large-scale
polio eradication programme.
In 1985, rotary put in place its PolioPlus campaign, which included a
US$120 million pledge to purchase vaccine. within three years the amount
actually raised had risen to US$247 million (Grand Prairie Metro rotary club
2005). This ambitious commitment was a significant catalyst for the global public
health community to make global eradication possible. the major partners to this
programme became the wHo, the United nations children's Fund (UnIceF), and
the U.S. centers for Disease control and Prevention (cDc).
The Beginnings of Polio Eradication
The fight against polio was most prevalent at first in North America. Prominent actors
such as the rockefeller Foundation and President Franklin D. roosevelt, himself
crippled by the disease, had invested time and money on alleviating the effects of
this disease in the 1930s. Significant advances in scientific research and vaccine
 
 
Search WWH ::




Custom Search