By Chioma Obinna & Peace Ezenwamma
The global fight to eradicate polio was greatly boosted as Rotary International and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation announced a renewed funding commitment of up to $450 million (N720 billion) over the next three years.

The announcement was made at the Rotary International Convention, where both partners reaffirmed their resolve to eliminate the disease, particularly in the last two endemic countries—Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Rotary International will raise $50 million annually, while the Gates Foundation will match each dollar with two additional dollars, as part of the extended partnership agreement.

“While historic progress has been made toward defeating polio—90 percent of the world’s population is now free from wild poliovirus—we’re facing significant challenges,” said Mike McGovern, Chair of Rotary’s International PolioPlus Committee.

“From competing financial priorities to fragile health systems, and even outbreaks in areas like Papua New Guinea, it’s clear that polio anywhere is a threat everywhere.”

The new commitment is set to fund vital components of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI), including vaccine delivery, disease surveillance, community engagement, and outbreak response. The GPEI, launched in 1988, is a partnership between Rotary, the World Health Organisation, WHO, UNICEF, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, CDC, the Gates Foundation, and Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance.

“Rotary was the first to envision a world without polio—and today, we have the tools and knowledge to make that vision a reality,” said Bill Gates, Chair of the Gates Foundation.

“If we all maintain our commitment and keep funding the solutions we know work, then soon, no family will have to live in fear of this horrific disease ever again.”

In a show of its emergency response capabilities, Rotary in late 2024 committed $500,000 to fund the first round of a two-phase polio vaccination campaign in Gaza, following the confirmation of a case involving a 10-month-old child.

Polio, a paralyzing and sometimes fatal disease, is set to become the second human disease in history to be eradicated, after smallpox. Since 1988, the GPEI’s coordinated global efforts have led to a 99.9 percent drop in polio cases—from an estimated 350,000 cases annually to just a handful in recent years.

Rotary International President, Stephanie Urchick, hailed the renewed partnership, calling it a testament to decades of determination: “For 40 years, Rotary has remained steadfast in our commitment to ending polio for good. The Gates Foundation’s continued partnership underscores the importance of this global effort.”

Canadian Rotary members alone have contributed $50 million to the fight, out of the more than $2.9 billion Rotary has invested globally since it launched its PolioPlus programme in 1985. The Canadian government has also demonstrated sustained support, most recently pledging CAD $151 million, bringing its total contribution to over CAD $1 billion.