End Polio Now
Since 1985, Rotary’s key humanitarian priority has been to rid the world of polio. The campaign to #EndPolioNow began at a time when over 1,000 polio cases a day were recorded in 125 countries. Today only a very small number of cases exist in two countries – Afghanistan and Pakistan. Over 400 million children still receive their polio vaccinations.
Rotary members in Great Britain and Ireland have been very strong supporters of End Polio Now. Many clubs – including Tonbridge Rotary – have planted purple crocus corms in public areas which flower in the spring to mark the polio campaign (the colour matches the dye painted on the fingers of children to show they have been immunised). The crocuses pictured were planted outside Ferox Hall opposite Tonbridge School and are shown flowering in Spring 2025.