[D9640general] [eFlash_Rotary] Digest Number 785

[gnakris at bigpond.net.au]

 Messages In This Digest (2 Messages) 
  1. 1488:  Somalia Polio Free From: Sunil K Zachariah 

  2. 1489: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to speak at Ontario presidential peace s From: Sunil K Zachariah 
Messages 
  1. 1488:  Somalia Polio Free 
Wed Apr 2, 2008 3:46 am (PDT) 
Somalia scores `historic' polio-free achievement
By Dan Nixon and Vivian Fiore 

In a triumph over violence, poverty, and poor infrastructure, Somalia 
has once again become polio-free. The Global Polio Eradication 
Initiative (GPEI) announced on 25 March that the West African nation 
hasn't reported a case of polio since a year ago. Although it 
eradicated the disease in 2002, Somalia became reinfected in 2005 by 
poliovirus originating in Nigeria, resulting in an outbreak of 228 
cases.

Innovative approaches tailored to conflict areas were pivotal in 
conquering polio in Somalia. More than 10,000 volunteers and health 
workers used several doses of monovalent vaccines to immunize 
children in insecure areas in a short period. With strong community 
support, the effort succeeded in reaching more than 1.8 million 
children under age five across one of the most dangerous countries on 
earth.

"This truly historic achievement shows that polio can be eradicated 
everywhere, even in the most challenging and difficult settings," 
says Dr. Hussein A. Gezairy, director of the World Health 
Organization's Eastern Mediterranean Regional Office. 

One of Somalia's volunteers and health workers is Ali Mao Moallim, 
the last person on earth to contract smallpox - the first disease 
eradicated worldwide - in 1977. Working with the World Health 
Organization, he has traveled extensively in his country to immunize 
children against polio and promote community support for immunization 
campaigns. "Somalia was the last country with smallpox," he says. "I 
wanted to help ensure that we would not be the last place with polio 
too." 

"Somalia beat polio in the midst of more widespread conflict and 
poverty than that affecting Afghanistan and Pakistan," says Dr. 
Maritel Costales, a UNICEF senior health adviser in New York, who 
cited the challenges of overcoming widespread insecurity and large 
population movements in a country with no central government. "But 
Somalia shows that when communities are engaged, children everywhere 
can be reached."

Afghanistan and Pakistan, which together accounted for 5 percent of 
all polio cases in 2007, could be the first of the four remaining 
endemic countries - the other two are India and Nigeria - to end 
polio. 

Consistent financial commitment continues to be crucial to polio 
eradication. Rotary International, the top private-sector contributor 
and volunteer arm of the GPEI, has contributed US$9.2 million for 
polio eradication in Somalia and $700 million worldwide since 1985. 
The global effort faces a shortage of $525 million for 2008-09, 
funding urgently needed to fight the disease in the remaining endemic 
countries and protect children in high-risk polio-free areas.

"Somalia clearly shows that the tailored tools and tactics of the 
intensified eradication effort are working," says Mohamed Benmejdoub, 
chair of Rotary's Eastern Mediterranean PolioPlus Committee. "A polio-
free world is a feasible public health goal and a global public good. 
I urge governments across the world - and in particular the G-8 
countries - to rapidly make available the necessary resources. 
Together, we can ensure that no child need ever again suffer the 
terrible pain of lifelong polio paralysis." 

Source: Rotary International News 
Courtesy: eFlash_Rotary


2. 1489: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to speak at Ontario presidential peace s 
Wed Apr 2, 2008 3:48 am (PDT) 
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to speak at presidential peace summit 

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will speak to Rotarians about enviornmental 
concerns and world peace during a keynote address this month at The 
Presidential Peace Forum in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. 

The conference will take place 25-27 April and is aimed at increasing 
awareness about Rotary's role in promoting peace. It will include a 
parade of international flags, an ecumenical faith service, a 
concert, and panel discussions centered around the forum's 
theme, "Peace Is Possible." RI President Wilfrid J. Wilkinson will 
speak at the opening ceremony. 

Kennedy was named one of Time magazine's "Heroes for the Planet" for 
his success in helping Riverkeeper lead the fight to restore the 
Hudson River. The group's achievment helped spawn more than 160 
Waterkeeper organizations across the globe. 

Other keynote speakers for the the peace summit include Former UN 
Ambassador Allan Rock, Jordanian UN Ambassador HRH Prince Zeid Ra'ad 
and Nobel Peace Prize Nominee Lloyd Axworthy. 

In the three days leading up to the event, various community 
activities will be held just across the border in Detroit, which is 
connected to Windsor by a bridge over the Detroit River. 

In conjunction with the forum, organizers are encouraging Rotarians 
to visit the event's Web site, Rotary Peace Summit, and share stories 
about how they've worked to foster peace and understanding. 

"We're shining the light on what we do to make the world a more peace-
filled place," says District Governor Jennifer Jones, who came up 
with the idea for the conference. "Rotary clubs initiate thousands of 
humanitarian projects every year. Each child we teach to read, every 
adult we help learn a trade, and every community playground we build 
is another step toward bringing the world together." 

Jones, governor of District 6400 (Ontario, Canada; Michigan, USA), is 
planning on attendance of 4,000 and has reserved a quarter of those 
slots for youth participants. The cost is US$175 for adults and $100 
for youths. Rotarians and non-Rotarians can register on the summit's 
Web site. 

Source: Rotary International News 
Courtesy: eFlash_Rotary
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