24 October is the World Polio Day, members of the Rotary Club of Suntec City joined fellow Rotarians across Singapore in purple for the End Polio Now Walk around Jewel Changi Airport. We walked to support Rotary’s mission to rid the world of polio for good.
On World Polio Day, the Rotary Club of Suntec City joined DG Dr Dolly Yeap and Rotarians from across Singapore for the Singapore region End Polio Now Walk, a morning of fellowship and shared purpose in support of one of Rotary’s most important causes.
Around 30 Rotarians and friends, all dressed in purple, gathered at Changi Airport MRT station and set off through Jewel Changi Airport and its lush Forest Valley. Their bright show of colour drew attention to Rotary’s mission to end polio for good. Our club was proudly represented by President Ruby Chong and PP Dr Keshava Murthy, together with Dr Muru, who joined as Dr Keshava’s guest.
Meanwhile, in another corner of the world, our member Mosharaf joined fellow Rotarians at the World Polio Day Rally in Hatirjheel, Dhaka, a reminder that the fight to end polio unites Rotary across borders.
What is World Polio Day?
World Polio Day is held every year on 24 October. It was established by Rotary International and marks the birth of Dr Jonas Salk, a pioneer of the polio vaccine. Around the world, Rotarians use the day to celebrate progress, thank front-line health workers and rally support to finish the job.
Rotary’s mission to end polio
Rotary’s fight against polio began right here in our region. Rotary’s first Health, Hunger and Humanity (3-H) project, in the Philippines, set out to immunise about 6 million children against polio. Its success led Rotary to make polio eradication a top priority, launching PolioPlus in 1985 and becoming a founding member of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative in 1988. Today, that partnership also includes the WHO, UNICEF, the US CDC, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance.
The progress has been remarkable. When the initiative began, there were an estimated 350,000 polio cases in 125 countries. Since then, cases have fallen by 99.9%, and more than 2.5 billion children have received the oral polio vaccine. Rotary members have contributed over US$2.1 billion and countless volunteer hours to the effort.
But the job is not yet done. Polio remains endemic in Afghanistan and Pakistan, and if eradication efforts stopped today, the disease could paralyse as many as 200,000 children a year within a decade. That is why every walk, every donation and every conversation still matters.
A story that came full circle
This year, Rotary International shared a moving reminder of where it all began. In 1979, under that very 3-H Program, then RI President James Bomar Jr administered polio drops to a toddler in Makati, Philippines. That child is now a professional tennis coach working in Malaysia, a living example of what a few drops of vaccine can mean for a lifetime.
Watch the video here.
Our thanks go to the organisers of the walk and to everyone who came out in purple this morning. Together, we are this close to ending polio. 
Interested in joining us at our next event? Get in touch with the Rotary Club of Suntec City to find out more.