A gift that lasts a lifetime

Rosemond closes her eyes tight. It’s only a second, and the fears quickly fade away. She has just received the HPV vaccine, a moment that, for a 13-year-old girl, might seem like a simple check on a health list but one that quietly unlocks futures.

She can already see herself turning her love for art and singing into becoming the next big gospel sensation, and an engineer, too. The dreams may seem at odds, but she has time to weave them together. At thirteen, she holds all the world’s possibilities in her hands, and now one big, small, powerful act of protection to guard them. 

Behind this moment stands Victoria Lariba Abaah, the Principal Community Health Nurse whose dedication and tireless outreach helped bring the HPV vaccine to her community, particularly to its youngest members.

Nhyiaeso is a lively community on the outskirts of Kumasi in Ghana’s Ashanti Region. A walk through its streets means breathing in the scent of roasted plantain mingling with the red dust of passing tro-tros. The local school stands at its heart, not only as a place of learning but as a gateway to health. It was here that the HPV vaccination campaign, and Victoria’s outreach, reached Rosemond and her classmates.

On a typical day, Victoria moves from classrooms to community centres, speaking with caregivers, adolescents, teachers, and local leaders about cervical cancer prevention and the power of vaccination. Thirteen years into her service, she still carries one story that reminds her why her work matters.

“I recall a 55-year-old woman who was diagnosed with cervical cancer at a late stage,” Victoria says. “She had never undergone screening or received the HPV vaccine because of limited awareness and access to healthcare. Her story highlights the importance of education, awareness, and accessible services. Knowing about the importance of regular screening and vaccination could have made all the difference.”

For Victoria, that woman’s story mirrors the broader challenges faced by many across Ghana: limited information, barriers to healthcare, and cultural norms that sometimes keep women from seeking care.

“To change this,” she says, 

Cervical cancer is the second most common cancer among Ghanaian women after breast cancer and remains a leading cause of cancer-related deaths. Due to late diagnosis, many patients do not survive. In 2024 alone, about 2,500 out of 3,000 women diagnosed with cervical cancer lost their lives, most detected at advanced stages when treatment options were limited. As Victoria notes, improving prevention and early detection is vital to saving lives.

In October 2025, Ghana launched its first nationwide HPV vaccination campaign, aiming to immunize 2.4 million girls aged 9 to 14. The campaign provided the vaccine free of charge through schools, community clinics, and mobile outreach teams, reaching both in-school and out-of-school girls across all 16 regions. UNICEF, working closely with Gavi  providedvaccine supplies and logistics support. In addition, with generous support from the Government of Canada, a mass media campaign, social mobilisation and community engagement efforts were deployed to reach girls in every region of the country. Frontline health workers like Victoria played a crucial role in making vaccine information accessible and in dispelling misinformation within communities.

“The hardest misconception to change is the belief that the HPV vaccine causes infertility,” says Victoria. “It’s a deeply rooted concern in some cultural and social settings. But there are other myths too, that cervical cancer only affects older women, or that the HPV vaccine is a population control strategy.”

For Victoria, every conversation, every classroom visit, and every answered question is a step toward change, one that ensures girls like Rosemond grow up protected and informed, not only about the dangers of HPV but also about their sexual and reproductive health. 

“Adolescents are vulnerable when it comes to sexual and reproductive health (SRH). It is therefore crucial to take into consideration key SRH factors when planning and delivering health services to them: adolescent-friendly practices are vital to give access to things such as age-appropriate SRH education and to create a safe and non-judgmental space for discussion”. 

In Nhyiaso, it’s what helped a 13-year-old girl like Rosemond close her eyes, take a deep breath, and choose protection over fear. In the words of Victoria: 

In the dedication of health workers like Victoria, and in the growing awareness among families, communities and girls, like Rosemond, lies a different future for Ghana where every girland every woman can stay healthy, dream freely, and grow into the person she chooses to become.