Vaccination Campaign Begins in Punjab Schools
Authorities in Pakistan’s Punjab province have launched a large-scale vaccination campaign against cancer-causing viruses, targeting school-aged girls. The initiative, led by the provincial School Education Department in collaboration with the Health Department, began on 15 September 2025 and will continue until 27 September 2025.
According to officials, the campaign seeks to immunize around 800,000 girls between the ages of 9 and 14. Health workers specially trained for the program will visit schools to administer the vaccine. However, children will only be vaccinated after written parental consent has been provided.
Protecting Against HPV and Cervical Cancer
The vaccine being administered is against the human papillomavirus (HPV) — a common sexually transmitted virus linked to several cancers, most notably cervical cancer. Globally, cervical cancer is the fourth most common cancer among women, with the World Health Organization (WHO) estimating over 600,000 new cases and 340,000 deaths annually.
Medical experts emphasize that vaccinating girls before potential exposure to HPV offers the best protection. For this reason, international health bodies, including WHO and UNICEF, recommend vaccination during adolescence. Punjab’s campaign aligns with these recommendations, aiming to provide early protection and reduce future health risks.
Collaboration Between Education and Health Departments
The Punjab School Education Department has issued clear instructions to all district Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of Education to ensure smooth implementation. Schools have been tasked with collecting parental consent forms and coordinating with visiting health teams.
The Health Department will deploy mobile medical teams, trained specifically for this campaign, to administer the vaccine in classrooms and maintain vaccination records. This school-based model is intended to maximize coverage and ensure that even girls from low-income or rural backgrounds are not left out.
Addressing Parental Concerns
Officials acknowledge that parental awareness and cooperation will be crucial. In conservative societies, discussions around reproductive health can be sensitive, and misconceptions about vaccines often spread quickly. Therefore, education and health authorities have jointly appealed to parents to provide consent promptly.
Public health specialists stress that the vaccine is safe, effective, and internationally approved. More than 100 countries worldwide have introduced HPV vaccines in their national immunization programs, and millions of doses have been administered with no serious safety concerns.
A Step Toward Long-Term Cancer Prevention
While Pakistan continues to grapple with high rates of preventable diseases, this campaign represents a significant step toward long-term cancer prevention. Cervical cancer remains a major public health challenge in South Asia due to limited screening facilities and late-stage diagnoses.
By focusing on prevention through early vaccination, Punjab aims to reduce the disease burden in the coming decades. Officials hope the campaign will pave the way for broader national adoption of HPV vaccination across other provinces.
Call for Parental Support
The government has urged families to see this campaign as an opportunity to protect their daughters’ future health. “Parents’ cooperation is essential,” a joint statement from the Health and Education Departments said. “By ensuring timely consent, they can help their children benefit from this life-saving protection.”
The campaign’s success will largely depend on how quickly schools receive consent forms and how effectively health teams reach targeted schools within the two-week window. If successful, it could become a model for other regions in Pakistan and beyond.
