Campaign Against Polio This is the VOA Special English
DEVELOPMENT REPORT. In nineteen-eighty-eight, world health
leaders started a campaign to end the disease polio around the
world. The World Health Organization, the United Nations
Children's organization, the United States Centers for Disease
Control and the group Rotary International organized the
campaign. It is called the Global Polio Eradication Initiative.
In nineteen-eighty-eight, officials estimated three-hundred-
fifty-thousand children around the world had polio. Recently,
the W-H-O reported only five-hundred-thirty-seven new cases of
polio in ten countries last year. This is the lowest rate of
polio in history. It is also a sign that the campaign to end the
disease has been almost a complete success. Polio is an
infectious disease caused by a virus. It can affect people at
any age. But polio usually affects children under age three. The
virus enters through the mouth and then grows inside the throat
and intestines. Signs of polio include a high bo