Kwara State Initiates HPV Vaccination for Schoolgirls to Combat Cervical Cancer
According to a news report from Punch, 787 girls from Kwara Basic Schools received the HPV vaccine on Monday in Ilorin, the state capital, as part of a campaign to prevent cervical cancer.
The National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), in partnership with the Kwara State government, launched the free vaccination programme among schoolchildren in the state.
Punch reports that the Federal Government had announced Monday, May 27, as the start date for the second phase of the HPV vaccination campaign in the country.
This second phase will include the states of Borno, Cross River, Delta, Ebonyi, Edo, Ekiti, Gombe, Imo, Kaduna, Katsina, Kebbi, Kogi, Kwara, Niger, Ondo, Oyo, Plateau, Rivers, Sokoto, Yobe, and Zamfara.
During the rollout of the Human Papillomavirus vaccine in Ilorin, the Executive Director of the NPHCDA, Dr Muyi Aina, highlighted that cervical cancer is the fourth most common cancer in women globally and the second most common cancer affecting women in Nigeria.
He noted that a total of 787 schoolchildren were vaccinated at the commencement of the programme in the state.
Aina, who was represented by Sheu Hassan, described the HPV vaccine as “a very important vaccine,” adding, “It prevents the HPV, which is the most common viral infection of the reproductive tract and causes more than 95 per cent of cases of cervical cancer.”
He said that eligible girls between the ages of 9 and 14 years across the 193 wards in the 16 local government areas of Kwara State would be vaccinated against cervical cancer during the five-day programme.
“I believe that together, we will achieve the goal of this exercise. At least 80 per cent of eligible girls aged nine to 14 years will be reached during the five-day intensification, after which the HPV vaccines will be accessed by our girls through routine immunisation services in our PHC facilities.
“Cervical cancer is the fourth most common cancer in women globally and the second most common cancer affecting women in Nigeria. It is estimated that 604,000 cases with 342,000 deaths occurred globally in 2020, and an estimated 12,075 cases and 7,968 deaths were recorded in Nigeria,” the NPHCDA boss said.
He described the vaccine as free, safe, and effective, urging stakeholders to mobilise family members, friends, and communities to ensure that all eligible girls got vaccinated.
In her remarks, the wife of the Kwara State Governor, Olufolake AbdulRazaq, assured of the efficacy of the vaccine, while she charged stakeholders to dispel rumours and misconceptions against the HPV vaccines.
“Today's event set the tone for an ambitious, inclusive strategy to accelerate eliminating cervical cancer as a public health concern. Elimination is within the reach of all, hence we in Kwara are committed to towing this path to ensure that we seize the opportunities within our reach now, so that our girls will live free of this disease.
“In complementing the efforts that culminated in incorporating the HPV vaccine into the national routine immunisation schedule and today's rollout, however, I urge key stakeholders in respective communities to continue to amplify awareness and sensitisation on the benefits of presenting eligible children for the vaccine.
“This no doubt will entail engagements with our communities, traditional and religious institutions to educate, inform, and dispel any misconceptions surrounding the HPV vaccine,” she added.
Cloud Tag: What's trending
Click on a word/phrase to read more about it.
Bature Bello Olatunji Bamgbola Aliyu U. Tilde Ahmed Saidu Rufai ER-KANG Bayo Lawal CCT Federal Allocation Share/Tsaragi Dauda Adesola Kazeem Oladepo Mohammed Ghali Alaaya TETFUND Senate President Lasiele Alabi Yahaya NIPOGA Adolescent Girls Initiative For Learning And Empowerment Kayode Alabi Government High School (GHS), Adeta Muritala Olarewaju Hikmah AbdulKareem Eruku Abdulkadir Orire Halimat Yusuf Rebecca Olanrewaju NITDA Zaratu Umar Alabi Lawal Senate Fareedah Dankaka TVC Female National Debate Kolawole Bashirat Mohammed Jimoh Faworaja Funmilayo Isiaka Oniwa Saliu Alamoyo Taofik Mustapha Habeeb Saidu Gani Saadu Rex Olawoye Ladi Hassan Post-utme MAI Akande Akume Tayo Alao Agbarigidoma Ilofa Usman Rifun Ibrahim Issa Jetti Muhammad Sirajo Aliyu Kayode Ogunlowo Kamoru Kadiri Ohoro Of Shao Yusuf Ibitokun Sherifat Babatunde Ishola Babaita Makama Of Ilorin Taofeek Ibraheem Muftau Akanbi Oke Federal Polytechnic Offa Taofik Abiodun Ahmed Millennium Development Goals Hakeem Lawal Ibrahim Oloriegbe Elekoyangan Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa Iyeru Grammar School Kwara Apc Hassan Taiye Salam Dele Momodu Amoyo Halidu Danbaba Roseline Oni Aremu KWSUED Ilorin Central Mosque Yahaya Jibril Usman Pategi Aiyedun S.O. Opowoye

