“A national milestone in women’s health”- as Ethiopia concludes Month-Long Cervical Cancer Campaign with Record-Breaking Results

Over 275,000 women screened, target exceeded by 103%, and thousands of precancerous lesions treated on the spot.

Addis Ababa, 14 January 2026 - Ethiopia has celebrated the successful closure of an unprecedented month-long cervical cancer screening and treatment campaign in six selected regions, achieving and surpassing almost every target set just 30 days earlier.

Launched on 7th November 2025 in the presence of senior government officials, the World Health Organization (WHO), and the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID), the campaign originally aimed to screen 267,662 eligible women aged 30-49 years, and 15-49 years for women living with HIV, across Addis Ababa, Amhara, Central Ethiopia, Oromia, Sidama and South Ethiopia.

Within only 30 days, 275,607 women were screened, representing 103% of the planned target. A total of 9,882 women were identified with precancerous lesions, and nearly 80% of them, approximately 7,836 women, received same-day treatment using cryotherapy, thermal ablation or loop electrosurgical excision procedure (LEEP), demonstrating that the "see-and-treat" approach can be delivered at scale in Ethiopia.

Over 1,036,222 people were reached through awareness and advocacy sessions, including 637,149 women directly engaged through community mobilization activities. Hundreds of health facilities, outreach sites, kebeles, churches, mosques, workplaces and markets were transformed into screening and education platforms with the active involvement of health extension workers, women's groups and religious leaders.

The closing ceremony, held at Nifas Silk Lafto Sub-city Woreda 12 Health Center, brought together H.E. Dr Dereje Duguma, State Minister of Health; Dr Mulugeta Endale, Deputy Head of the Addis Ababa Health Bureau; Prof. Francis Chisaka Kasolo, WHO Representative a.i. and Director of the WHO Liaison Office to the African Union and UNECA; Mr Mario Fanjul, AECID Country Representative; as well as health workers, survivors, women's groups and partners.

In his keynote address, Prof. Kasolo described the results as a national milestone in women's health and evidence that Ethiopia's goal of eliminating cervical cancer as a public health problem is within reach. He stressed that the campaign was never intended as a one-off effort but as a proof of concept to demonstrate that Ethiopia has the capacity, partnerships and community trust required to eliminate cervical cancer. He noted that the alignment of policy leadership, catalytic financing and community engagement had delivered results at scale.

He further highlighted the catalytic role of AECID's funding and the Ministry of Health's "No Excuse" leadership and the dedication of thousands of health workers who delivered the campaign.

The cervical cancer drive was implemented in parallel with the national Breast Cancer October Awareness Campaign under the motto "Early Detection Saves Lives", strengthening referral pathways and reinforcing community commitment to addressing the two leading cancers affecting Ethiopian women.

The campaign has generated important lessons and tools that will now be institutionalized. Enhanced registers and digital reporting platforms introduced during the drive will be integrated into routine health information systems, thermal ablation and cryotherapy devices will remain in daily use, follow-up and recall systems will be strengthened to retain women in care, and screening and treatment services will be fully embedded within primary health care and the Health Extension Program to ensure sustainable national coverage.

In his closing remarks, Prof. Kasolo reiterated that cervical cancer is preventable, curable and that in Ethiopia it will be eliminated, reaffirming WHO's commitment to stand with the country until that promise becomes reality.

The Ministry of Health, WHO, AECID and partners have reaffirmed their commitment to build on this momentum, scale up HPV testing and vaccination, expand screening sites and work towards screening at least 2.6 million women annually, the pace required to achieve the global 90-70-90 cervical cancer elimination targets by 2030.

Today, Ethiopia did not merely close a campaign; it opened the door to a cervical cancer-free future, he concluded.