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How can one help PolioPlus Ride 2003?
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PolioPlus Updates 2002 Trustee chairman represents Rotary at UN events As part of the side events at the UN Special Session on Children, leaders of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative signed a pledge reaffirming their commitment to 'go the last mile' to beat polio once and for all. Held at the main lobby of the UN Plaza building on 8 May, the special media event entitled "The Last Mile to End Polio, A Partnership for Children," was attended by Foundation Trustee Chairman Luis Vicente Giay, WHO Director General Gro-Harlem Brundtland, UNICEF Director Carol Bellamy, U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson, and U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) representative Dr. Dave Fleming. To witness the signing, UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador Roger Moore, whose Hollywood career includes starring roles in six James Bond movies, was joined by young people from Pakistan and Nigeria, two of the 10 remaining polio-endemic countries that are working hard to eradicate the crippling disease. The leaders of the polio eradication initiative made two-minute remarks about the challenges and hopes of the global initiative before signing the 8-foot by 8-foot (2.4-meter by 2.4-meter) pledge that reads, "We pledge this day to end polio. This is our promise to all children. Together we will keep it." "The United States is committed to its role as a major technical and funding partner to assure that polio eradication occurs quickly," said Thompson, who also praised Rotary's volunteer and fundraising efforts in the polio eradication initiative. "As the remaining polio-endemic countries are amongst the most difficult in which to work, this goal can only be achieved through a strong partnership which includes the full engagement of the United Nations network, much of which is already working with the Global Polio Eradication Initiative," said Dr. Brundtland. Giay represented Rotary at the 8-10 May UN Special Session on Children, a follow-up of the 1990 UN-sponsored World Summit for Children which made polio eradication one of its primary goals. He was accompanied by International PolioPlus Committee Chairman William T. Sergeant, RI representatives to the UN Donald W. Treimann, Sylvan M. Barnet, Jr., and Past District Governor Bradley Jenkins. Having been granted special credentials by the UN office of protocol, Giay had free access to the plenary and group sessions, press conferences, and all program activities. "Instead of just making formal statements about our Rotary Foundation, I had the opportunity, therefore, to maintain a dialogue with other participants, particularly regarding polio eradication," he said. In addition to meeting with UN Secretary General Kofi
Annan, Microsoft CEO Bill Gates, and former South African President Nelson
Mandela, Giay discussed Rotary's humanitarian programs with more than 35
UN officials and world leaders, including the presidents of Albania, Haiti,
Kiribati, Mexico, Peru, Portugal, and Zambia.
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