Rotary Donates $30 million to Kick Polio out of Africa

In the months leading up to the FIFA World Cup in June, Rotary clubs across Africa have been gearing up for the final push to kick polio out of the continent.

On 23 February, Rotary’s 105th anniversary, a Kick Polio Out of Africa campaign launched with the symbolic kicking of a soccer ball signed by Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu, a polio survivor.

The journey began in Cape Town, South Africa, one of the host cities for the 2010 World Cup. The ball will travel through 22 polio-affected countries en route to the RI Convention in Montréal, Québec, Canada, in June. The primary sponsor of the campaign is DHL Express.

During the ball’s four-month journey, Rotary clubs in the polio-affected countries will hold soccer-related polio awareness events to mobilize public support for immunization activities. Along the way, the ball will be signed by each national PolioPlus committee chair. Follow the ball's journey on the Kick Polio Out of Africa blog. An interactive map shows African countries’ efforts to end the disease.

Join Rotary's effort to Kick Polio Out of Africa

In the months leading up to the FIFA World Cup, Rotary members across Africa are gearing up for the final push to kick polio out of the continent. 
 
In February, Rotary launched its Kick Polio Out of Africa awareness campaign with the symbolic kicking of a soccer ball signed by Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu, who had polio as a child.
 
From Cape Town, one of the host cities of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, the ball is traveling through 22 polio-affected countries en route to the RI Convention in Montréal, Québec, Canada, next month. 
 
During the ball's four-month journey from the southern tip of the continent to Alexandria, Egypt, Rotary clubs along the way are organizing soccer-related awareness events to mobilize the public for Pan-African mass immunizations this spring. 
 
A new campaign, launced this week invites everyone around the world to become involved in Kick Polio Out of Africa. Visit http://www.kickpoliooutofafrica.org to sign a virtual ball, add comments and view more than 1,000 signatures that already have been posted. Download the press release. 

Share Rotary's Kick Polio Out of Africa campaign through social media

Start promoting the Kick Polio Out of Africa campaign online through social media. Make sure to visit the official blog, updated by Rotarians in Africa, to learn more about the events. Consider posting a link to the blog on your personal Facebook page, or starting a conversation on LinkedIn. If you want to spread the word using Twitter, make sure to add hashtags to your tweet using keywords that describe the campaign, such as #polio, #soccer, or #Africa. Continue promoting the Kick Polio Out of Africa campaign by forwarding the blog to family and friends. Have another idea for promoting this campaign? Send your tip to pr@rotary.org.

See the Rotary International site for latest Polio News updates.