HPV Vaccine Reaches 6 Million Girls in West Africa

Each year, cervical cancer causes roughly 660,000 new cases and 348,000 deaths worldwide. Most of these cases happen in low‑ and middle‑income countries. Africa accounts for about 20% of cases and 30% of deaths. In 2020, the World Health Assembly adopted a plan to eliminate cervical cancer by 2030, with targets for vaccination, screening, and treatment.

In 2025, four West African countries launched large‑scale vaccination drives that targeted girls aged 9 to 18. The approach, called a multi‑age cohort campaign, aimed to reach more than seven million girls. Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, Liberia, and Sierra Leone each organized their own efforts.

Overall, the drives reached about 6,306,294 girls, achieving 85.5% coverage. Individual country results varied: Côte d'Ivoire reported 88%, Ghana 84.5%, Liberia 60%, and Sierra Leone reached 100%. All four nations met the minimum operational readiness score of 80% in every assessed area.

More than 35,000 health workers were trained, and their competency scores rose from 58.8% to 89.5% after training. The cold chain that keeps vaccines effective stayed above 98% functional in all sites. Only 314 minor adverse events were reported, all of which were mild. The program also examined equity, using school enrollment data and travel‑time maps to ensure remote girls were not overlooked.