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Mo Ibrahim: Good Governance Crucial in the Fight Against Polio
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It’s a common sight in Africa’s streets: a young man pulls himself along on makeshift crutches, trying to sell you cigarettes or cellphone credit. Infected early with polio, this man has lost the use of his legs, and must now work harder and longer than anyone else to make a living.

In Video: Kicking Polio Out of Sudan

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The fact that he does, as do affected men and women across the continent, is a remarkable example of courage in adversity. Polio is no barrier to success – just ask Archbishop Desmond Tutu, who suffered from the disease, or the Congolese band Staff Benda Bilili made up of polio survivors who are taking the world by storm – but it does make success more difficult to achieve. And the real tragedy is that their suffering was entirely preventable. There is no longer an acceptable reason for anyone to contract polio. The debilitating disease, which has crippled and killed millions throughout history, can be completely eradicated thanks to effective and inexpensive vaccines and immunisation programmes.

In Video: Staff Benda Bilili Band

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A global campaign to eradicate polio - spearheaded by WHO, Rotary International, UNICEF and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - has already seen astonishing success in reducing incidences of the disease. In 1988, more than 100,000 new cases of polio were reported annually on the African continent. Today, the disease no longer appears in many African countries. Where it does, new incidents of polio are often measured in single digits rather than thousands.  The most recent success story is Nigeria; only five new cases of polio have been reported so far this year, compared to 388 cases at the same time last year.

In Pictures: Polio

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