While evidence demonstrated barriers to HPV vaccination, the actual costs of vaccinating a girl with the HPV vaccine in the light of resource constraints in Nigeria is poorly understood. This study seeks to fill this gap by estimating the financial costs of introducing the HPV vaccine in Nigeria, focusing on comparing costs between Bayelsa, a southern state, and Taraba, a northern state. The findings of this research contribute to the body of knowledge on the costs of vaccine introduction in diverse settings to guide policy direction and decision-making for HPV vaccination programs in Nigeria and countries with similar contexts.
The total financial cost per fully vaccinated girl was similar between the two states, at US$6.04 in Bayelsa and $6.02 in Taraba, $4.99 of which was the antigen cost. Transportation, logistics and data tool costs were the largest proportion of the operational costs (38% in Bayelsa, 39%, in Taraba), followed by service delivery (22% in each state), and the advocacy, communication, and social mobilization activities (20.0% in Bayelsa and 20.5% in) also represented notable operational cost drivers.
The states’ initial intensive campaign strategy with community and partners’ continual collaboration in planning and implementation proved effective in quickly achieving high coverage. These states’ success in introducing HPV vaccine through a campaign strategy can serve as a useful model for other countries.
Thumbnail image credit: Hadiza Hussayn Jibril
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