FG, stakeholders to launch partnership to eliminate cervical cancer in Nigeria
The federal government, in collaboration with development partners and other stakeholders, is set to launch a programme geared towards tackling cervical cancer in the country. The programme tagged ‘Partnership to Eliminate Cervical Cancer in Nigeria (PECCIN)’, is an initiative of the National Task Force on Cervical Cancer Elimination (NTF-CCE), and established to accelerate the implementation […]
The federal government, in collaboration with development partners and other stakeholders, is set to launch a programme geared towards tackling cervical cancer in the country.
The programme tagged ‘Partnership to Eliminate Cervical Cancer in Nigeria (PECCIN)’, is an initiative of the National Task Force on Cervical Cancer Elimination (NTF-CCE), and established to accelerate the implementation of the World Health Organisation’s 90-70-90 targets in Nigeria.
A statement from the task force yesterday signed by the chair, media and communications, Moji Makanjuola, said it aims to catalyse multi-sectoral action for preventing, screening, and treating cervical cancer through sustained coordination, resource mobilisation, and service delivery scaleup.
The launch of the initiative, which is slated for Tuesday , 3rd of June, 2025 will be flagged off by the First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu in Abuja.
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The First Lady had earlier reaffirmed her commitment to the fight against cervical cancer through a generous donation of N1 billion naira to the task force from the Renewed Hope Initiative.
The Chairman of the National Task Force on Cervical Cancer Elimination (NTF-CCE) and former Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole, said the objectives of PECCIN is to drive sub-national government —led coordinated expansion of cervical cancer elimination activities , and foster multisectoral coordination and collaboration.
He said 60 million women in Nigeria are at risk of developing cervical cancer and that approximately 22 women die daily from the preventable and treatable disease in the country.
He further stated that in 2020, the World Health Organsation (WHO) launched the cervical cancer elimination initiative — the first global commitment to eliminate a cancer and has set a target date of 2030 .The strategy is based on three pillars of 90-70-90: – Primary prevention through HPV vaccination and secondary prevention through early screening and access to early cancer treatment.
The NTF-CCE, the former minister said, was established in August 2024 by the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, to lead Nigeria’s national response on cervical cancer.
Prof. Adewole added that by 2027, the task force aims to vaccinate 50% of eligible girls, and screen 50% of women while strengthening health systems to ensure effective treatment for all detected cases.
For effectiveness, the task force comprises ten specialised sub-committees for comprehensive programme oversight.
The federal government, through the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), has vaccinated over 13 million girls with the Human Papillomavirus vaccine ( HPV) to protect them against cervical cancer. This was achieved with the collaboration of partners, such as WHO, GAVI and UNICEF.
Meanwhile Nigeria is noted to have led the proposal that resulted in the approval of November 17 every year as the World Cervical Cancer Elimination Day, at the recent World Health Assembly (WHA) in Geneva.
This is to promote consciousness and action against cervical cancer around the world.
PECCIN members are drawn from the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, World Health Organisation (WHO), National Institute for Cancer Research and Treatment (NICRAT), the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF), National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA), NPHCDA, Clinton Health Alliance Initiative (CHAI), Private Sector Health Alliance of Nigeria (PSHAN) and the the Gates Foundation.