FG to begin second phase roll out of HPV vaccine on May 27

The National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA) says it is set to commence the second phase of the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination.

Rufai Garba, director of disease control and immunization at NPHCDA, announced the planned vaccination in Abuja on Friday at a one-day sensitisation meeting with women’s religious groups.

The meeting was organised by the NPHCDA in collaboration with Girl Effect Nigeria.

In October 2023, the federal government launched the first phase of the HPV vaccination.

HPV vaccines prevent infection by certain types of human papillomavirus, a common sexually transmitted infection that can cause a range of conditions in men and women, such as cervical cancer.

The vaccination targets over seven million girls aged nine to 14.

The first phase of the exercise covered Abia, Adamawa, Akwa Ibom, Bauchi, Bayelsa, Benue, FCT, Jigawa, Kano, Kebbi, Lagos, Nasarawa, Ogun, Ondo, and Taraba states.

Garba said the second phase implementation of the vaccine would cover Anambra, Borno, Cross River, Delta, Ebonyi, Edo, Ekiti, Gombe, Imo, Kaduna, Katsina, Kwara, Kogi, Niger, Ondo, Oyo, Plateau, Rivers, Sokoto, Yobe, and Zamfara states.

He said that despite the challenges, the country has begun the distribution of the vaccine to states, noting that the exercise will commence on May 27.

He expressed optimism about the public’s cooperation to receive the vaccine despite the resistance from anti-vaccine groups during the first phase.

“These groups disseminated misinformation, including quality videos aimed at discouraging vaccination,” he said.

He said pre-emptive public sensitisation is important to checkmate misinformation, drawing lessons from past experiences with polio vaccine resistance.A