Rotary is a worldwide voluntary organisation of 1.2 million members founded in 1905 by Paul Harris, a Chicago businessman.
Rotary is a service organization whose purpose is to bring together business and professional leaders in order to provide humanitarian services, encourage high ethical standards in all vocations, and to advance goodwill and peace around the world. It is a non-political and non-sectarian organization open to all people regardless of race, colour, creed, religion, gender or political preference. There are 34,282 member clubs worldwide and 1.2 million members.
Members usually gather weekly to fulfil their first guiding principle to develop friendships as an opportunity for service. “It is the duty of all Rotarians to be active as individuals in as many groups and organizations as possible to promote, not only in words but through exemplary dedication, awareness of the dignity of all people and the respect of the consequent human rights of the individual.”
The object of Rotary is to encourage and foster the ideal of humanitarian service as a basis of worthy enterprise.
The Rotarian’s primary motto is “Service above Self”