“It is a matter of satisfaction that we have completed one year without any single new case of polio being reported from anywhere in the country,” said Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh at the summit, which was organized by the government of India and Rotary International. “This gives us hope that we can finally eradicate polio not only from India but from the face of the entire mother earth. The success of our efforts shows that teamwork pays.”

India’s last reported case was a two-year-old girl in West Bengal State on 13 January 2011. Before polio eradication can be certified in India, it must go two more years without another case of the disease. Polio remains endemic in only three countries: Afghanistan, Nigeria, and Pakistan.

Bivalent oral vaccine
Until 2009, India accounted for nearly half the number of the world’s polio cases. A chief factor in the country’s success has been the widespread use of the bivalent oral polio vaccine, which is effective against both remaining types of the poliovirus. Another has been rigorous monitoring, which has helped reduce the number of children missed by health workers during National Immunization Days to less than 1 percent, according to WHO.

Rotary International has played a major role in helping to stop the transmission of polio in India. Rotary has been a spearheading partner in the Global Polio Eradication Initiative since 1988, along with WHO, UNICEF, and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is also a key supporter of the initiative.

Sporting their signature yellow vests and caps, the nearly 119,000 Rotarians in India have helped administer vaccine to children, organize free health camps and polio awareness rallies, and distribute banners, caps, comic books, and other items.

Global support from Rotarians
“With the support of their Rotary brothers and sisters around the world, Indian Rotarians have worked diligently month after month, year after year, to help organize and carry out the National Immunization Days that reach millions of children with the oral polio vaccine,” says RI President Kalyan Banerjee, of the Rotary Club of Vapi, Gujarat. “As an Indian, I am immensely proud of what Rotary has accomplished. However, we know this is not the end of our work. Rotary and our partners must continue to immunize children in India and in other countries until the goal of a polio-free world is finally achieved.”

Robert S. Scott, chair of Rotary’s International PolioPlus Committee, calls India’s achievement “a significant step towards a polio-free world – an example as to what can be accomplished no matter what problems need to be overcome. Rotarians of India are and should be proud of the key efforts they have made at all levels, without which the world would not be marking this milestone.”

Deepak Kapur, chair of the India PolioPlus Committee, also credits the Indian Ministry of Health and Family Welfare for its commitment to ending polio. To date, the Indian government has spent more than US$1.2 billion on domestic polio eradication activities. “We are fortunate that our government is our biggest advocate in this effort,” Kapur says.

Source: Rotary International

New Generations Programs
Ages 12-30, can get involved in Rotary’s New Generations programs which include:

Youth Exchange

Interact

Rotaract

RYLA

Educational programs
Rotary Foundation Educational Programs promote international understanding by bringing together people from different countries and cultures.

Rotary has a long tradition of fostering peace and international understanding through education.

Since 1947, Rotary Foundation Ambassadorial Scholarships have given more than 41,000 men and women the opportunity to study abroad. Although the program will come to an end in 2013, new scholarship opportunities through the Foundation’s district and global grants will give Rotarians greater flexibility to sponsor scholars.

Rotary Peace Centers offer a master’s degree in international relations, sustainable development, peace studies, and conflict resolution, or a professional development certificate in peace and conflict studies

Ambassadorial Scholarships

Rotary Peace Centers

Alumni
Each year, thousands of young men and women participate in Rotary’s educational and New Generations programs, which enable them to develop new skills, serve their communities, and foster international understanding. But the experience doesn’t have to end when the program is over.

As alumni, they are part of an extended network of people who share a common bond. They’ll always belong to the family of Rotary. Keep them involved with the ideas and resources in Rotarians and alumni

Rotarians and Alumni

Reconnections Newsletter

Rotary Peace Centers students

Rotary Community Corps
A Rotary Community Corps (RCC) is a group of non-Rotarian men and women who share Rotary’s values and commitment to service. With the guidance and support of their sponsor Rotary clubs, RCCs plan and implement projects that address issues affecting their communities such as health, literacy, safety, employment, and the environment. They may also help support Rotary club service efforts. Currently there are more than 7,000 Community Corps in over 80 countries.

The goals of the Rotary Community Corps programs are to:

•Develop partnerships between Rotarians and non-Rotarians in a joint effort to enhance their community.

•Support community members who proactively address community needs, recognizing their unique ability to identify the most pressing concerns and suitable methods of implementation.

•Promote sustainable solutions to community needs by engaging a broader segment of the community in developing and implementing focused service projects.
RCCs empower community members to initiate and implement their own service projects and facilitate collaboration between Rotarians and non-Rotarians in their community development endeavors. RCCs can flourish anywhere in the world where Rotary exists.

It doesn’t matter what you have to give, it can be your time, it can be your talents, or it can be your money, all giving is good. Not only for the recipient but for the giver.

Make a difference today – even if you are not a Rotarian (yet), donate what you can, where ever you see a need that you can fulfill.

Visit clubs to see what they’re doing and maybe find something that you’d like to get involved with.

Even better – if you have a great idea, share it with your club and put on a great event.
Rotary events are a great way to use your creative talents, your project management skills or to share your social skills with others.

If you have a great idea for a fund raiser – get people involved and put it together!
If you see something in your community that needs changing – put together a project.