Dennis Erezi
Ondo State Government said it plans to vaccinate girls aged nine to 14 years against the Human Papillomavirus (HPV) to protect them against cervical cancer.
Permanent Secretary of the Ondo State Primary Health Care Development Agency (OSPHCDA), Dr. Francis Akanbiemu, said the vaccination will commence on Children’s Day, May 27.
Akanbiemu, who disclosed that HPV, which predisposes women and girls to cervical cancer, emphasised that the vaccine is already available in the state, adding that it would be administered to girls aged 9 to 14 across the 18 local council areas of the state.
Speaking on Tuesday in Akure, Akanbiemu noted that a mop-up exercise would take place after the launch to ensure that all eligible girls were reached.
He said: “The vaccine will roll out on Monday, May 27. Please, mothers, allow your children to be vaccinated. We cannot quantify what the government is doing now in terms of this human papillomavirus vaccine.
“The long-term effect of having daughters who would not come down with cervical cancer in the future would be a monumental one. The government has started a race now, and the race will not be complete until girls aged 9–14 are reached.”
Akanbiemu, who dispelled the myth that the HPV vaccine affects the female reproductive system, urged mothers to shun any misconceptions and present their girls between the ages of 9 and 10 for vaccination.
On his part, the Director of Disease Control in the agency, Dr. Victor Adefesoye, while noting that the government hoped to vaccinate 80 percent of girls in the first instance, hinted that the vaccine would be taken around schools, markets, places, and other designated points.
He further stressed that the vaccination would also be available in all primary health care centres across the state.
“The government is targeting 80 percent of our girls in the first instance, and this can be made possible with the help of our mothers. Please let us catch these children young with the HPV vaccine and present them for the vaccination when our health workers get to you.”
Adefesoye added that health workers scheduled to administer the vaccine had already been trained to carry out the exercise with a sense of responsibility.
The state immunisation officer, Mrs. Comfort Olagundoye, also urged school proprietors and mothers to cooperate with health workers when they get to them.
