The government on Thursday launched the final phase of Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination campaign in Barishal, Chattogram, Khulna, Mymensingh, Rajshahi, Sylhet and Rangpur divisions.

The government is running the nationwide vaccination campaign with the support of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, UNICEF, and WHO to protect 6.2 million girls aged 10-14 against cervical cancer.

This final phase of the campaign will span for a month building on the success of the first phase of protecting more than 1.5 million girls with the HPV vaccine in October 2023 in Dhaka division.

The recipients have been asked to register online by www.vaxepi.gov.bd to receive the HPV vaccine in the country.

“All the recipients have to register online to get the HPV vaccine. Then the girls have to bring the downloaded vaccine card to receive the vaccine from selective vaccination centres,” Mohammad Shahriar Sajjad, deputy director (EPI) of DGHS said on Monday while addressing an orientation programme arranged by National Institute of Mass Communication.

However, the girls who can’t resister online, they can get the HPV vaccine by showing the vaccine card provided by health workers, he added.

“The 2nd highest cancer related deaths among women are caused due to cervical cancer in Bangladesh. The government successfully vaccinated over 1.5 million girls with a single dose of the HPV vaccine in Dhaka division in October 2023. From today (Thursday), HPV vaccines will be provided free of cost in the remaining seven divisions to vaccinate girls  studying in class five to nine and girls aged 10-14 years who are out of educational institutions,” said M A Akmall Hossain Azad, senior secretary, Health Service Division under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, on Thursday.

With Gavi´s support, 6.2 million vaccines have been procured in 2024 and will be available at educational institutions or designated vaccination centres free of cost after registering on the “VaxEPI” app or on the dedicated website.

Vaccination sessions will continue from 8:00am to 3:30pm every day, except on weekends and public holidays.

“Today’s (Thursday) launch means millions more girls will be protected against cervical cancer in the years to come,” said Thabani Maphosa, chief country delivery officer at Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance.

“Gavi, in partnership with the Government of Bangladesh, is committed to expanding access to this life-saving vaccine, ensuring that women and girls across the country have the scope to thrive and lead healthy lives.”

In 2023, over 14 million girls across the world -including the 1.5 million girls in Bangladesh – were vaccinated against HPV with Gavi support.

This critical second vaccination phase will build on last year’s incredible progress and contribute towards the Alliance’s goal of reaching 86 million girls by the end of 2025.