Polio Infrastructure in Nigeria Helped Prevent the Spread of Ebola

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In 2014, when the epidemic of Ebola was running wild in Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone, a few cases of the frequently lethal hemorrhagic disease popped up in nearby Nigeria. This was scary because Nigeria is so much more populous than the other affected countries–almost 200 million people were suddenly at risk.

Health officials tapped the existing polio-fighting infrastructure in Nigeria to quickly organize an effective effort to prevent the spread of the disease there.

Dr. Tunji Funsho, chair of the PolioPlus Committee of Rotary International in Nigeria was a first-person witness to the effort. During my recent visit to Rotary headquarters in Evanston, Illinois, I visited with Tunji about the Ebola experience.

It is worth noting that fighting Ebola did not unduly distract from fighting polio. The country has now been three years without a single case of polio from the wild poliovirus.

Interview with Dr. Tunji Funsho, the Chairman of Rotary’s Nigeria PolioPlus Committee of Rotary International.

The following is the pre-interview with Dr. Tunji Funsho. Be sure to watch the recorded interview above.

What is your personal or professional connection to polio?

Dr. Funsho leads Rotary’s Nigeria PolioPlus Committee

Where are you presently focused?

Nigeria recently marked three years free of endemic wild polio. This is an important milestone on the road to official certification of the region.

How do we get from where we are to total polio eradication?

We must remain committed to ensuring the political and financial support necessary to ending polio around the globe for good.

More about Rotary International:

Twitter: @Rotary and @EndPolioNow

Facebook: facebook.com/PolioPlusNigeria

Instagram: @rotaryinternational

Website: endpolio.org.ng/ and www.endpolio.org

Rotary brings together people of action from all continents and cultures who deliver real, long-term solutions to the world’s most persistent issues. Each year, Rotary members contribute millions of dollars and volunteer hours to promote health, peace and prosperity in communities across the globe. Rotary is the driving force behind efforts to eradicate polio. With its partners, they have achieved a 99.9 percent reduction in polio, with less than 35 cases reported in 2018 compared with 350,000 a year three decades ago.

Dr. Tunji Funsho. Photo Credit: Rotary International

Dr. Tunji Funsho’s bio:

Twitter: @dr_funsho

Dr. Funsho, a cardiologist who is a fellow of the Royal College of Physicians of London and a member of the Rotary Club of Lekki Phase I, is a past district governor of Rotary International. A resident of Lagos, Nigeria, he has worked with children and families impacted by the wild poliovirus.

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