Investing for Humanity High Level Announcement

And now we move to yet another moment in this exciting agenda today. One that many of us have been waiting for. As we are now about to witness the major pleasures for the eradication of polio from global leaders. These new funds will help protect 370 million children each year. It will accelerate vaccination efforts in the final endemic countries and strengthen health systems worldwide.

So please join me in welcoming back to the stage her excellency Dr. Shama Khalifa al-Mazui, the acting director general of the Muhammad bin Zed Foundation for Humanity. Your Excellency, Your Highness, Your Excellencies, Distinguished. We have repeated one fact today and it continues to define the moment. Polio is 99% eradicated.

But the final 1% is actually the hardest. The point where history either completed or allowed to slip away. Today at Abu Dhabi Finance Week, we choose to complete it. It's a privilege for Muhammad bin Z Foundation to convene this moment and to stand with our partners who have carried this mission forward for decades. Leaders, donors, healthcare workers, global health partners.

You are there together and you did work together and you are the force that has brought the world within the reach of eradication. Yet progress is a fragile. We have seen how those quickly gains can be reversed. Today matters not only as a financial milestone but as a clear statement of of elective determination. As a foundation we believe deeply in catalytic philanthropy where investment can shift trajectories strengthen health care system and deliver a lasting impact and ending polio embedded that vision.

every dollar invested in dollar in in polio to protect children today and will create a system that will safeguard communities for generation. Therefore, on behalf of Muhammad Mai Foundation for Humanity, I'm honored to announce the additional $140 million to end polio and secure a healthier future for every child. We make this commitment not in isolation but actually in partnership with countries, communities and our colleagues who did le this this fight for polio for a decades. Let this be to remember as the moment the war chose to finish what started moment that we stood together and deliver one of the human greatest achievements in public health. Appall your free word.

Thank you.

Thank you so much your excellency Shukran Jaziland. And now we have a few words from Ree Albali, the Radavan, the federal minister for the economic cooperation and development from Germany. Partners, ladies and gentlemen, since the foundation of GPEI, the number of people infected with polio has been reduced to almost zero worldwide. Only two countries are left in which wild polio is still present at all. This needs to be compared to 125 countries at the time when GPI was founded.

And that is very impressive. And yet polio has not been defeated. The wild polio virus has been detected in German wastewater recently. That shows polio knows no borders. Any country in the world could be affected again.

We all have to stay alert. The eradication of polio needs constant effort globally. Let me thank GPEI and its partners for their tremendous engagement. As international community, we have prevented millions of deaths and cases of paralysis and together we keep on fighting. I am proud to announce that Germany is contributing a total of 53 million euros for 2025 and 2026 to support GPI's critical work.

Germany is a strong advocate for global health. We have contributed to the global polio eradication initiative since the very beginning and let me assure you we will stay engaged because these challenging times need more international cooperation more than ever. That is why we call on all partners to join us in our mission to eradicate polio and to strengthen health systems worldwide for a healthier and safer future for all. Well, it now gives me an absolute pleasure to invite to the stage his excellency Assan Ikbal Chaari, the Minister for Planning and Development and Special Initiatives from Pakistan. Sir, Rahman, your highness, excellencies, distinguished leaders, ladies and gentlemen, I'm honored to join you today on behalf of the Prime Minister of Pakistan, Mr.

Muhammad Shabbaz Sharif, and the people of Pakistan. Allow me to express our deep gratitude to the government of United Arab Emirates, the Muhammad bin Zad Foundation for humanity and the global polio eradication initiative for convening this moment of shared purpose. Pakistan and the UAE are bound by a partnership of trust, humanity and hope. The personal leadership of his highness sheh Muhammad bin Zad al- Nayan has protected millions of children. Pakistan carries this friendship not only in policy but in its heart.

Excellencies, polio eradication is not simply a public health program for us. It is a moral obligation. Every child we save from par paralysis is a victory for humanity. Every child we fail is a wound to our collective conscience. We are determined to end polio not because it is easy but because nothing less is worthy of our children.

Yes, challenges remain. Localized transmission, difficult terrain, and communities on the margins. But we do not describe them as obstacles. We embrace them as responsibilities and we confront them with a united national will. Today the signs of progress are unmistakable.

Virus circulation is shrinking to the smallest geographic footprint in the decades. Vaccination quality is rising. Surveillance is the strongest it has ever been. Most importantly, trust within communities is growing. Pakistan's momentum is real and it is accelerating.

Ladies and gentlemen, our progress rests on three firm pillars. First, strong political leadership under the direction of the prime minister. Polio eradication is now a top national priority. Federal and provincial governments move with one voice and one resolve. Second, a sharper strategy.

We are intensifying campaign reach, investing in the frontline workforce and deploying data and technology to ensure every child, every single one is vaccinated. We are also integrating polio assets into broader health reforms under the Uran Pakistan initiative to create lasting systems of care. Third, the trusted partnerships. Pakistan deeply values the unwavering support of UAE Muhammad bin Zad Foundation for Humanity, WH, UNICEF, Rotary International, and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, CDC, and all the GPI partners. This coalition is one of the most successful humanitarian partnerships in modern history.

Above all, we pay tribute to our heroic frontline workers, our brave women and men who cross mountains, deserts, and river rivers, often under difficult conditions to protect our children. Their courage is the beating heart of this mission. Excellencies, today I am proud to announce on behalf of the Prime Minister and Government of Pakistan that Pakistan is pledging US dollars 640 million over the next four years to complete this mission. This is not just a financial pledge. It is a pledge of resolve, ownership and national commitment.

Pakistan and Afghanistan remain the last two endemic countries. We stand shouldertosh shoulder with international community for synchronized campaigns, shared surveillance and coordinated border operations. With sustained global support, we can and we will interrupt the final chains of transmission together. Ladies and gentlemen, to conclude, let me say the world is closer to ending polio today than at any time in human history. The last mile is always the hardest, but it is also the most defining.

With persistence, partnership and predictable financing, the dream of a polopfree world will become a historic achievement of our generation. Pakistan stands fully committed, fully mobilized and deeply optimistic. Together with the leadership present in this hall and the courage of our frontline heroes, we can ensure that no child anywhere on this planet will ever again suffer from polio. Let us finish this journey together and let us make history together. Thank you for your support.

Thank you so much, your excellency. And I understand now we have the Islamic Food and Nutrition Council of America, represented here today by Miss Azma Ahad, the director of Halal Market Development. And I'm going to come down here and have a quick chat with you. And uh I have a microphone at the ready. Yes.

And we would love to see you. And just briefly, if you could explain how you've been supporting polio eradication efforts over the last several years.

So we've been supporting uh GPI GPI over the past several years. Uh we're a small organization based in Chicago, Illinois, and we feel really passionate about having an impact to uh prevent a disease that's uh and not a disease that won't impact people negatively over time. And I want to really make the point that we all have choices of where we donate to. And the reason GPI is such an important initiative is because not only the immediate impact, but the generational impact your dollars will have. Um, so we are proud, the Islamic Food and Nutrition Council of America is proud to be supporting GPI over the next four years for $4 million.

We're excited to be joining you guys again.

Wow. absolutely huge amount hearing that live. Thank you so much for that. And now we have an audience with Mike Bloomberg, the founder of Bloomberg Philanthropies. When I was growing up, polio was one of the world's most feared diseases.

The polio vaccine was one of the great advances of the 20th century. And now with the help of health care workers, governments, and the work my friend Bill Gates is leading through the global polio eradication initiative, we're on the verge of eradication. That would be one of the greatest public health achievements in human history, and I'm optimistic we can get there. Bloomberg Philanthropies has been glad to support this mission for more than a decade, and today we're pledging another hundred million in the fight to eradicate polio. Together, we can protect every child everywhere from this preventable disease.

No one should have to live in fear of the disease ever again. So, thank you for your leadership. Keep up the great work. All the best.

Such phenomenal people we're hearing from today and the pleasures. And we have yet more people to invite to the stage. It gives me great honor to invite Michael McGovern, the chair of Rotary International's Portfolio Portf Polio Plus, excuse me, committee. So, please come to the stage. Thank you.

Thank you very much. Rotary and the Gates Foundation have enjoyed a longstanding partnership on polio eradication funding. And earlier this year, we again extended our partnership beyond our current agreement to cover the three-year period from 2027 to 2029. I want to highlight what our renewed 2:1 matching agreement with the Gates Foundation means. It means something not only for ending polio, but for building a foundation for broader public health.

When Rotary commits $1 to polio eradication, the Gates Foundation matches it with two. This means that every dollar becomes three, dramatically amplifying our resources in and impact. Through our new agreement, Rotary commits to raising US $50 million each year, which the match turns into $150 million annually, contributing to a joint commitment of $450 million over the next three years. This will raise the amount being allocated by Rotary community volunteers since we began this 40 years ago to over $3.5 billion.

With this funding, we maintain critical capacities. Vaccine delivery, surveillance, outbreak response, community mobilization that reaches children in the most difficult and underserved regions in the world. But the significance goes beyond polio. This match preserves and strengthens a global health delivery infrastructure, the network of trusted community health workers, cold chain logistics, data and surveillance systems, and grassroots relationships represents a readymade foundation on which we can build. We do this match not only as a mechanism to end polio but also as a launchpad to deliver broader health impact.

When we combined capital, proven infrastructure and trusted community networks, we can give children everywhere healthier, more hopeful beginnings. Rotarians envisioned a polio-free world over 40 years ago. Ending polio quickly became a collective mission of many like-minded organizations, individuals, and governments. We thank all of you for sharing the dream. Together, we end polio.

Thank you. Thank you so much, Michael. If I could ask you to stay on stage, Michael, catch you before you run away because I would love now to invite somebody you know very well. I am sure it's a great honor to invite Bill Gates once again to the stage, a chair of the Gates Foundation. Gentlemen, Well, thank you all uh for being here for this very important m milestone in the fight against polio.

the the success we've had to date uh is built on some incredible partnerships and you know at the top of that list I would include uh Rotary International. Uh they've stuck through this uh you know they've activated their members, they've activated their voice and we simply couldn't have done it uh without them. So we're very pleased to be part of the two to one match carrying that forward uh through the years that we'll get this done. The number of partnerships uh required has been very very broad. Uh the US government has been there very early on.

Uh recently uh we had uh the government of Saudi Arabia come in as a significant donor which is a fantastic milestone. Uh and the polio effort has been full of innovation uh meeting the challenge of the environments that we work in. the invention of sewage surveillance as a way to see where the disease is and even doing genetic sequencing to understand where it came from, where we need to double down. That tool not only is help polio but will be a key tool uh to detect potential pandemics and prevent them uh rapidly. Uh so uh very very important uh polio pioneered the idea of tracking the vaccination teams to understand if they're able to get to all the locations they're supposed to and that's now being used for outreach v vaccination saving lots of lives.

Um we also faced challenges in polio where there were rumors about the polio vaccine for example uh in Nigeria just after the turn of the century and we built then partnerships with the Muslim religious leaders uh where they spoke out uh they vaccinated their own children and resumed the confidence people had uh to take the polio vaccine and we're using that relationship for all the health interventions including uh other vaccines today. Uh so it's been you know full of learning uh even improving uh the polio vaccine uh combining it with other vaccines uh to make it easier to give and make it uh less expensive. Uh it was great to hear the commitment uh from Pakistan. Uh you know they are doing novel things uh using both forms the oral and the injectable polio vaccine. Uh so uh polio is about uh partnership.

It's about uh perseverance. Uh today uh on behalf of the Gates Foundation uh I'm announcing a commitment of 1.2 billion uh over the next four years uh to the polio campaign. It's very fitting that we're making this announcement here in the UAE where uh the UAE and the AI Abu Dhabi government uh and the leaders have been so fantastic not only on polio but increasingly on many areas of global health. You know, I was asked on the panel, why give to global health?

Uh, and let me tell you, versus any other form of giving, uh, this improves lives uh far more effectively. You know, the majority of children uh will be born uh in Africa through this century and making sure those kids not only survive, but they also thrive. Uh, that's something we should all double down on uh to make that happen. Uh when I thought about uh this polio campaign yesterday, I I was thinking, you know, we've got to keep going uh you know, I was watching the Grand Prix race uh which was so fantastic and I think thought, hey, you don't stop on the last lap. The last lap in some ways it may be the hardest, you may be the most fatigued.

Uh but that's where the reward comes. Uh so let's all commit uh to push down the pedal and achieve a polio free world. Thank you. Thank you so much, Bill. And a great honor to have you both on the stage.

And now the moment that we've all been waiting for. We will see the ascending numbers behind us for the final pledge. And we thank those that have made such generous contributions today. Uh and the event has raised 1.9 billion US dollars.

Such a cause to end polio and of course protect all those children around the world. To honor such an occasion, I would now like to invite the whole of the front row here to take a commemorative photo to celebrate this very special moment. Gentlemen, if I could ask you to come here and everybody from the first row for your photograph. Heat. Heat.

Hey, hey, hey. Okay. What an honor and thank you so much for joining us here today. It's worth saying that figure again 1.9 billion US pledged to end polio for every child everywhere.

Thank you. Shukran Jazilan.