Local Rotary Club commits to “End Polio Now” project.

In December 2007, Rotary International received from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation a gift of US$100 Million (£65 Million) that Rotary will match over the next three years. This has given rise to the Polio Challenge to every Rotary Club in the world to raise $1,000 each year for the next three years.

The Rotary Club of Ascot has risen to the challenge and has now pledged its initial support towards this target, with an immediate contribution of £500, to be followed by similar sums in future years.

President David Marshall said, “This project provides an opportunity for Rotary Clubs around the world to work together towards a single global humanitarian goal. We are very pleased in Ascot to be playing our part in the process.”

Polio mainly affects children under the age of five, invading the nervous system and often causing total paralysis in a matter of hours. There is no cure for polio, but it can be prevented through immunisation.

Remarkable progress has been achieved in the fight against polio. Since Rotary began its PolioPlus program in 1985, polio cases have fallen by 99 percent from 350,000 a year to 1,313 in 2007. Today, polio remains endemic in just four countries: Afghanistan, India, Nigeria, and Pakistan. To date, Rotary has contributed more than £440 million and countless volunteer hours to the protection of more than 2 billion children in 122 countries.

Notes for Editors: Rotary is an organisation of business and professional persons united worldwide, who provide humanitarian service, encourage high ethical standards in all vocations and help to build goodwill and peace in the world. Members carry out this work in their own community and/or overseas by giving their time and their expertise. A Rotary Club is open to men and women who are business, professional or community leaders who want to use their experience for the benefit of the community.