We’re so close to ending polio for good, just look how far we’ve come.

It’s a disease that primarily affects children under 5 and can cause total irreversible paralysis and even death. In 1988 there were 350,000 cases of poliomyelitis or polio reported across 125 countries, and there was significant risk of the disease spreading to even greater numbers and spiralling out of control. It was for that reason that major governments, NGOs and international organisations rallied together to launch the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI).

Image courtesy of Rotary International

The progress that has been made by this concerted global campaign since it’s inception has been truly remarkable. According to the World Health Organisation, more than 10 million people are today walking, who would otherwise have been paralysed. Today, only three countries - Nigeria, Afghanistan and Pakistan- remain polio endemic, and we are in a better position to eradicate this debilitating disease than we have ever been.

The broader developmental benefits of total polio eradication are clear- economic modelling has shown that getting rid of the disease could save over $40 billion dollars for low income countries. Most importantly though, this would mean that no child ever has to suffer the terrible effects of polio paralysis again.

We could be the generation that ends this disease once and for all.