In a major international initiative, world leaders pledged $1.9 billion on Monday to strengthen polio eradication efforts at the pledging conference hosted by the Mohamed bin Zayed Foundation during Abu Dhabi Financial Week. The pledges aim to close the remaining funding gap for the Global Polio Eradication Initiative strategy from 2022 to 2029, estimated at $440 million.
The commitments include $1.2 billion from the Gates Foundation and $450 million from Rotary International, amid global funding challenges, including cuts in foreign aid by the United States and other wealthy countries such as Germany and the United Kingdom.
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization, stated that the new pledges will help reach all children in countries where polio remains endemic and combat outbreaks of mutated polio strains worldwide. He emphasized the importance of focusing on surveillance and vaccination in high-risk areas to ensure the initiative’s success.
