Rotary’s role in India’s success against polio draws global media coverage

Rotary International News -- 5 April 2012

 The role played by Rotary International in helping India stop transmission of the wild poliovirus generated strong media coverage worldwide. News of India’s milestone achievement of going one year without polio in January garnered more than 100 media placements that featured Rotary, representing nearly 250 million online visitors and a print circulation of over 10 million readers. Nearly 95 percent of the coverage of the milestone – by the Associated Press, The Economist, Financial Times, New York Times, Reuters, and other major media – mentioned Rotary’s leading role in the achievement.

In February, the BBC featured a news story that highlighted Rotary’s role in India. The BBC also carried several news stories, blog posts, and Twitter feeds related to Rotarians participating in the country’s National Immunization Days. India’s removal from the list of polio-endemic countries by the World Health Organzation was announced at Polio Summit 2012 by Ghulam Nabi Azad, the country’s minister of Health and Family Welfare.