By Duncan Mboyah
Kenya’s Ministry of Health has launched a national five-year cervical cancer elimination action plan.
Aden Duale, Cabinet Secretary in the Ministry of Health, said that the launch of the 2026 – 2030 action plan is a step forward in the fight against one of the leading causes of cancer-related deaths among women in the country.
“Let us make a vow to end cervical cancer in Kenya. We must leave no girl unvaccinated, no woman unscreened, and no patient untreated,” Duale said during the launch in Kenya’s capital of Nairobi.
Duale noted that by protecting women, Kenya is safeguarding families and upholding the nation’s dignity.
He observed that the development of the action plan has been necessitated by the fact that the East African nation records 6,000 new cases and 3,500 preventable deaths from cervical cancer each year. The figure is not merely numbers but families that are torn apart, and communities diminished.
The official added that the action plan is designed to drive progress towards the global 90–70–90 targets—that agitates for the vaccination of 90 per cent of girls against Human Papillomavirus (HPV), a common infection that is spread through sex, screening 70 per cent of women, and ensuring 90 per cent of those diagnosed receive timely treatment.
“The plan prioritizes HPV vaccination, early and equitable screening, prompt treatment and long-term follow-up, in line with the World Health Organization (WHO)’s strategy to eliminate cervical cancer as a public health threat,” he noted.
Duale noted that the country is transitioning to a single-dose HPV vaccination schedule, expansion of HPV DNA testing, introduction of self-sampling to increase screening uptake, and deployment of digital health innovations to extend services to women in all 47 counties.
He said that Kenya is currently investing towards strengthening referral systems, expanding cancer treatment infrastructure, building a skilled health workforce and advancing health financing reforms to make cancer care accessible, affordable and equitable.
Duale revealed that the HPV vaccines must be administered free of charge in all public and private health facilities in the country.
As part of transparency and accountability, he urged all health facilities to display a charter to clearly indicate free services that are offered by the government in the health sector to promote transparency, curb overcharging and protect patients’ rights.
He added that any health facility that will be found to have charged patients who seek cervical cancer treatment will face legal consequences.
