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Dear Fellow Rotarians,
RI President Barry Rassin's response to the three questions raised
by Financial Times - International Edition
Barry Rassin, president of Rotary International, who
this week presented Theresa May, the UK prime minister, with the
Polio Champion Award for her commitment to an eradication campaign
that has so far cost governments, donors and NGOs $15bn.
Why did Rotary first become involved in polio
eradication?
Rotary in the Philippines wanted to get rid of polio
over 30 years ago and helped with immunisation. What’s amazing
is that we still have a strong passion to finish what we started.
We believe we can eradicate the disease. We can get to communities
nobody else can and advocate for government and private funding.
Do you think the disease will ever be eradicated?
The question is how long before it happens. We believe
we will see the last case during the next calendar year. But we
need to keep reminding Rotarians that we have to keep everything
going for the coming three years until the world is certified polio-free.
Wouldn’t it be better to spend the money on other things?
If we stop the campaign, polio will spread again.
The WHO estimates 200,000 children would be paralysed in the next
decade otherwise. Last year we raised more funding than ever at
$414m. But we have to rethink how we are going to finish this. We
are in discussions about what to do differently.
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