Can You Feel the Beat…to Beat Polio?
This year, Shot@Life is encouraging everyone to dance to end polio around the world. Why dancing? Polio is a debilitating disease that can cause paralysis and often impedes a child’s ability to walk or dance.
Facts about Polio
- In 1988 there were 350,000 cases of polio in 125 countries. Today there are 51 cases in two countries: Afghanistan and Pakistan.
- In 2015, polio now exists in fewer places than ever before and we are 99% of the way to eradicating it altogether.
- Nigeria was removed from the list of polio-endemic countries this year. If Nigeria remains Polio-free, Africa will also be Polio-free for the first time.
- The UN helps delivers more than a billion doses of polio vaccine to children every year.
- Polio drops are now often delivered alongside essential services including nutrition support, primary health care and other vaccines.
- As long as polio exists anywhere, it is a threat to children everywhere. If polio is not eradicated we could see a global resurgence of the disease, with as many as 200,000 new cases each year within a decade.
- Eradicating polio will have a long-lasting impact. Polio eradication will generate savings of $50 billion over the next 20 years, and the expertise, infrastructure and personnel are already being applied to address other health challenges such as Ebola
As long as polio exists anywhere, it is a threat to children everywhere. Today, we’re 99% of the way to eradicating polio all together. We need to finish the job! Let’s dance because a world without polio is a world where every child can dance no matter where they live!
Grab the kids and have a dance party to support Shot@Life and beat Polio! Share with your friends and use the hashtag #ShotAtLife #GivingTuesday!
