How women are helping deliver a healthier, polio-free world

Women are playing a key role in the fight to end polio, and we have been fortunate, as leaders of Rotary International, to see the direct impact of their extraordinary efforts. In Pakistan, one of the last two countries where the virus remains endemic, we have accompanied female health workers going door-to-door speaking patiently with parents, and giving drops of polio vaccine to children during vaccination campaigns. We have also met female Rotary members worldwide—from Canada to the Philippines—who dedicate their time to informing their communities about how they can contribute to ending this disease for good. Success today is contingent on ensuring women are present, supported, and empowered at every level of the initiative. Rotary International and our partners in the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) are fighting hard for this goal, and we urge the global community to help us make it a reality. Jennifer Jones is a member of the Rotary Club of Windsor, Ont., and served as president of Rotary International in 2022-23. Photograph courtesy of Rotary International Rotary International is a worldwide service organization that has worked with communities around the globe since 1985 to advocate for polio eradication. As a result of these efforts alongside our other GPEI partners, more than 20 million people are walking today who would otherwise have been paralyzed for life. We know this endeavor has proven difficult. But stopping now means putting this incredible progress at irreversible risk. The path to success is clear—and women will continue to play a central role. Women’s contributions to the polio effort have a long and storied history. Across Canada, women nurses cared for thousands of children paralyzed by polio during epidemics in the first half of the 20th century. In many places where polio remains today, men are prohibited from entering homes, and women alone can enter and administer polio vaccines or meet with caretakers. Over the years, the polio program has made a concerted effort to better understand local gender norms, and ensure girls and boys are equally protected with vaccines. Now, more than ever before, women are at the decision-making table at even the highest levels of the program—we’ve seen it first-hand in our roles as the first two female presidents of Rotary International. Stephanie Urchick, a member of the Rotary Club of McMurray, Pennsylvania, USA, will become Rotary’s president for 2024-25 on July 1. Photograph courtesy of Rotary International We are grateful that Canada has long been an exemplar in leading and elevating this work. Polio eradication has been a priority for the past five governments, transcending parties and unifying us all in a common goal to protect children everywhere from disease. Through its Feminist International Assistance Policy, Canada has prioritized and invested in empowering women, and addressing barriers to ensure girls and boys have equal access to critical services. This focus has inspired the GPEI’s Gender Equality Strategy, and has helped establish innovative programs like The Listening Project in Pakistan, which enables women polio workers to lead the polio effort today while also preparing them for careers post-eradication. Programs like this are critical as many of the world’s most pressing challenges today have an outsized impact on women. Coinciding crises worldwide put health funding—including funds to support gender equality work—at risk. In many places, women bear the burden of climate catastrophes and political strife as the caretakers of their families and communities. Growing insecurity in Pakistan, for example, where over 60 per cent of polio workers are women, can shift the job of polio workers from difficult to dangerous. Inside the headquarters of Pakistan’s polio program in Islamabad, there is what’s known as the Wall of Martyrs: an array of photographs of the dozens of women and men who have lost their lives while providing immunizations. It is a constant reminder of how serious this work is, and what they are doing for the children of our world. We were inspired by the women we met who took great pride in their work, and who are determined to eradicate polio in their communities so all children and families can live without the fear of this disease. But they need our support. As we edge closer to finally eradicating this virus, continued partnership and investment could not be needed more. With Canada’s continued support in this final stretch, we know we will end polio together and empower the next generation of women to take on the world’s greatest challenges. Jennifer Jones, a member of the Rotary Club of Windsor, Ont., served as president of Rotary International in 2022-23. Stephanie Urchick, a member of the Rotary Club of McMurray, Pennsylvania, USA, will become Rotary’s president for 2024-25 on July 1. Rotary International is a worldwide service organization and spearheading partner of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative, which also includes the World Health Organization, UNICEF, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance. The Hill Times