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Up to 2,410,924 girls between the ages of 9 and 14, making up 66 percent of the intended group, received the Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine throughout the 12-day campaign that ended on Saturday.

To improve coverage further, district health officers (DHOs) have been directed to organize three more ‘catch-up’ days between September 29 and October 1, focusing on immunizing girls who have not yet received the vaccine, especially in union councils (UCs) where the vaccination rate was found to be low.

As per information provided by the Directorate of the Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI), DHOs are instructed to keep conducting vaccination efforts in schools where coverage is below 80 percent or those that were not reached during the first days of the campaign. The EPI has also ordered all field teams and supervisors to engage fully in the catch-up campaign, without any extra financial support.

On the last day of the initiative, 223,636 girls received the HPV vaccine, reaching 73 percent of the daily goal, which increased the total coverage to 66 percent of the provincial target.

The initiative is aimed at safeguarding young girls from HPV, a major contributor to cervical cancer, and is being carried out in every district of the province under the oversight of the EPI Directorate.

Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (Syndigate.info).