At a press conference, the presidents of Macau’s eight Rotary clubs (Rotary Club of Macau, Rotary Club of Hou Kuong, Rotary Club of Macau Central, Rotary Club of Guia, Rotary Club of Macau Islands, Rotary Club of Amizade, Rotary Club of Penha, and Rotary Club of Oriental Pearl) announced that the 2024 End Polio Charity Walk & Run will raise funds to support Rotary International’s efforts to eradicate polio worldwide.
The organisers are expecting a minimum of 400 participants for the Walk & Run. Entry fees range from MOP 150 to MOP 300, depending on whether participants choose to walk or run. Participants can also donate additional funds to the PolioPlus Fund. The registration deadline is 4 October.
About PolioPlus Fund
The PolioPlus Fund finances polio vaccines, mobilises community resources and supports the operational costs of international efforts to immunise children, detect and trace cases, and eradicate polio worldwide.
Rotary members have contributed more than US$2.1 billion and countless volunteer hours to protect nearly 3 billion children in 122 countries from this crippling disease. Rotary’s advocacy efforts have helped governments commit more than US$10 billion to eradicate polio.
About Global Polio Eradication Initiative
Polio, or poliomyelitis, is a paralysing and potentially fatal infectious disease that most often strikes children under the age of 5. The virus spreads from person to person, usually through contaminated water. It can then attack the nervous system.
Rotary has worked to eradicate polio for more than 35 years. Our goal of ridding the world of this disease is closer than ever.
As a founding partner of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative, Rotary has reduced polio cases by 99.9% since its first immunisation project in the Philippines in 1979.
Today, polio remains endemic only in Afghanistan and Pakistan. But Gaza recently reported its first polio case in 25 years – a 10-month-old boy who is paralysed in one leg. This underscores the importance of continuing efforts to keep other countries polio-free. If all eradication efforts stopped today, polio could paralyse as many as 200,000 children a year within 10 years.
All countries will remain at risk of polio until the disease is eradicated from the world. Until then, the best way for countries to minimise the risk and consequences of polio infection is to maintain high levels of community immunity through high immunisation coverage and strong disease surveillance to detect and respond to polio quickly.
About Rotary International District 3450 – Area 1
Rotary International District 3450 – Area 1 comprises of a total of 8 Clubs: Rotary Club of Macau, Rotary Club of Hou Kuong, Rotary Club of Macau Central, Rotary Club of Guia, Rotary Club of Macau Islands, Rotary Club of Amizade, Rotary Club of Penha, and Rotary Club of Oriental Pearl
