What are the Rotary foundation's objectives?

Rotary Foundation members from across the world all

share the idea of promoting human well-being and

harmonious development. As such, since 1917, the year of the Rotary Foundation’s creation, its main humanitarian objectives and achievements have been particularly wide-ranging: peace and conflict resolution, disease prevention and treatment, water and sanitation, maternal/ infant health, literacy and basic education and local and economic development. These objectives are considered by the Rotary Foundation to be the six strategic areas of its commitment, financial support and humanitarian work worldwide.

 

Which key events stand out in the Rotary foundation's history?

As its 100th birthday approaches, the Rotary Foundation is close to achieving its ultimate objective: eradicating polio across the globe. In fact, in 1978/79, which marked the 75th anniversary of the Rotary International, its governing bodies decided to implement a vast immunisation campaign, via its 3-H Programme (Health, Hunger and Humanity), to protect against polio, focusing on mass vaccination among children, particularly in developing countries. This humanitarian project gave rise to other campaigns promoting global peace, significant

work to provide clean water and huge literacy

programmes. In total, today the Rotary Foundation has invested 3 billion American dollars as part of its

continuous humanitarian work.

 

How does the foundation see itself developing over the next few years?

The fight against polio and the vigilance to ensure its

definitive eradication remain the Foundation’s main

concern, along with the Bill & Melina Gate Foundation and other global organisations including the GPEI (Global Polio Eradication Initiative), the WHO (World Health Organisation) and UNICEF (United Nations Children's Fund). The savings created by eradicating polio are estimated at 50 billion dollars over the next 20 years, an amount which can be used to tackle other critical issues including measles, the Ebola virus and the eradication of other diseases in a post-polio world. In addition to the six strategic areas already mentioned, environmental issues and emergencies linked to climate change will certainly feature as new priorities for the Rotary Foundation as it works to create a better world for everyone.