Health officials team with a soccer tournament for cervical cancer
vaccination for African girls
[January 26, 2026]
By FARAI MUTSAKA
NORTON, Zimbabwe (AP) — Lesotho’s Lishoeshoe soccer club was losing by
four goals at halftime against South Africa’s Mamelodi Sundowns in the
final of a regional Under-17 girls’ tournament in Zimbabwe aimed at
promoting cervical cancer vaccination. By fulltime, the gap had
stretched to 5-0.
Yet for Lishoeshoe winger Nteboheleng Leticia Sooane, the result felt
beside the point.
For the 16-year-old, the tournament’s most important outcome had little
to do with goalmouth scrambles or final-whistle disappointment. Instead,
it was about building confidence among girls to trust the HPV vaccine
and prevent a disease that kills a woman every two minutes globally —
with the burden most acute in Africa, according to GAVI, the Vaccine
Alliance, one of the tournament’s organizers.
“Participating in the tournament was very good because we had to learn
and spread (the message) even though we did not win the finals. So it
was a good experience,” Sooane said as she waited to collect her
finalist’s medal in a rain-soaked stadium in Norton, on the outskirts of
Zimbabwe’s capital, Harare.
Sooane was among about 200 girls from six countries taking part in the
CAF Under-17 girls’ tournament in December, organized by Africa’s soccer
governing body CAF together with the European soccer body, GAVI and
health ministries from several African countries.
Dubbed the Goal Getters campaign, the initiative was first showcased in
Tanzania and Eswatini earlier last year before moving to Zimbabwe in
December, using soccer to build awareness and trust in the HPV vaccine.
Offered for free, the HPV vaccine being administered to girls aged
between 9 and 14 years can prevent up to 90% of cervical cancer cases,
saving families thousands of dollars in treatment costs later in life if
girls are not vaccinated, according to GAVI.
Campaign blends sport and health
After setbacks caused by COVID-19 lockdowns and uneven national
immunization programs, Africa has intensified HPV vaccination drives in
recent years. Coverage for at least one dose of the HPV vaccine rose to
40% in 2023 from 28% the previous year, behind only behind North,
Central and South America, driven by expanded campaigns backed by
governments and GAVI, according to the World Health Organization.
The girls’ soccer tournament is a key part of that effort, said GAVI
spokesman Olly Cann.
“One of the great aspects of the Goal Getters campaign is that it
enables us to blend two things that teenage girls are passionate about,
one is sport and the other is health,” said Cann. “It creates a really
safe space where the girls can feel trusted, they can feel secure, they
also feel empowered.”
The campaign’s launch mixed dance and song before the eight-team
tournament kicked off. On the sidelines, mothers streamed to a nearby
clinic, some drawn by the chance to see well-known women’s soccer
figures, while also getting their children vaccinated against HPV.
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A 10-year-old girl reacts after receiving a free dose of the HPV
vaccine at Budiriro Polyclinic in Harare, Zimbabwe, Saturday, Jan.
17, 2026. (AP Photo/Aaron Ufumeli)
 HPV, or human papillomavirus, is a
common sexually transmitted virus and the primary cause of cervical
cancer. While most infections clear naturally, some persist and can
lead to cancer years later.
Cervical cancer is the fourth most common cancer among women
worldwide, killing about 350,000 women each year, according to the
WHO. Africa accounts for nearly a quarter of global deaths, and 19
of the 20 most affected countries are in sub-Saharan Africa, Cann
said.
Zimbabwe is among the five countries with the highest burden on the
continent. Cervical cancer is the most common cancer among women in
the country of 15 million people and kills about 2,000 women
annually, according to the national cancer registry.
Ahead of the girls’ tournament, Zimbabwe introduced a single-dose
HPV vaccine, a shift authorities hope will boost uptake following
the two-dose regime rolled out nationally in 2018.
‘There are many misconceptions’
Misinformation and stigma around reproductive health remain major
obstacles. On a recent weekend in January, just two 10-year-old
girls turned up for vaccination at Budiriro Polyclinic in one of
Harare’s densely populated townships — a pattern health officials
say is common, forcing most HPV vaccinations to be delivered through
schools instead.
“Many families are not bringing their children to the clinic to be
vaccinated,” said Barbara Mashonga, the nurse in charge of community
mobilization at the clinic. “Even when we follow up at schools, some
refuse. The biggest challenge is religious beliefs.”
“Some parents think the injections are a secret family planning
method that will prevent their children from having babies,” she
said. “There are many misconceptions, which is why health education
is a major part of the campaign.”
Officials say soccer-based initiatives can help bridge that gap.
“We are embracing these opportunities so our communities can become
better because of soccer,” said Nqobile Magwizi, president of
Zimbabwe’s soccer association, as celebrations erupted for
tournament winners Mamelodi Sundowns.
For Sooane, the message went beyond the final score.
“Cancer is a big disease, so every child should get the vaccine so
they can be protected,” she said. “So all of us came here to learn
about it so we can keep our health intact.”
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