We were among the first generation of Americans to receive the polio vaccine. We were able to live our lives free from the fear of contracting this debilitating disease. Today, that is our wish for all the world's children. In 1988, there were over 350,000 cases of polio in the world. Today, there are only about 7,000.
Total eradication is within our grasp.
Rotary International has raised nearly half a billion dollars for this cause, which is an extraordinary amount for any group, but even more so for a volunteer organization. Last month, we submitted our most recent Polio Report to Congress, which describes just how closely we work with our Polio Partners. I mentioned earlier that we've been working for over 20 years to combat polio. We continue to immunize children from the biggest cities of India to the most remote villages of Africa. And we have played a major role in creating stronger surveillance systems, which are critical not only to fighting polio, but also other infectious diseases.