Microsoft Corporation MSFT co-founder Bill Gates says he remains committed to it eradication of polio with his philanthropic foundation announcing $1.2 billion in support to end all forms of the debilitating disease worldwide.
What Happened: The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation said on Sunday that his new commitment will support the implementation of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative”s Polio Eradication Strategy 2022-2026.
“Polio eradication is within reach. But as far as we’ve come, the disease remains a threat. If we work together, the world can end this disease,” Gates said.
In an interview that Gates shared on Twitter, he said the world came “closest” to eradicating polio six months ago.
Last week I sat down with Bloomberg @Business to talk about why I remain committed to polio eradication. By coming together and funding initiatives like the Global Polio Eradication Initiative, we can #EndPolio and build a healthier world. https://t.co/ziQgsz5JMn
— Bill Gates (@BillGates) October 16, 2022
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Why it matters: Gates’ comments came ahead of World Polio Day on October 24 – which marks the birth of polio Jonas Salk who led one of the first teams to develop a vaccine against polio.
The latest grant to GPEI aims to end wild-type poliovirus in the last two endemic countries – Pakistan and Afghanistan. The foundation has contributed nearly $5 billion to the initiative, according to a statement.
Gates said failing to eradicate polio “would mean hundreds of thousands of children would be paralyzed.”
In August, Gates sounded the alarm about the discovery of the polio virus New York sewers.
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