Beauty queens for HPV: how Liberian influencers took on vaccine disinformation
Worried that faceless rumour merchants might imperil a life-saving vaccination campaign, the Ministry of Health assembled a crack team of online superstars to fight back.
- 3 September 2026
- 5 min read
- by Tina S. Mehnpaine
At a glance
- With online disinformation on the rise, the Liberian Ministry of Health called on a group of influencers with large social media followings to support a November 2025 vaccination campaign.
- One of those influencers was Goretti L. Itoka, model, former Miss Mano River Union, current host of the Most Beautiful Girl in Liberia pageant and passionate advocate for vaccination.
- Online and at public gatherings, Itoka had glamorous backup: current pageant contestants stepped up alongside her to speak out for the human papillomavirus vaccine.
When the Liberian Ministry of Health asked Goretti L. Itoka, former Miss Mano River Union and mother-of-one, to join a campaign for human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine awareness, she was excited.
Itoka was raised in a vaccine-positive household – “My mom took vaccinations very seriously,” she says – and she’d carried that attitude forward into adulthood. This wouldn’t be the first time the model spoke out in support of immunisation.
But this time, the stakes felt higher. As a prominent social media personality with tens of thousands of followers on Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook, Itoka was ready to leverage her platform against a growing outbreak of online vaccine misinformation.
Liberian online space has been lately been flooded by anti-vaccine rhetoric designed to dissuade the public. To combat this rising tide of disinformation, the Ministry of Health is fighting fire with fire, and rallying a force of digital content creators.
Crack team assembled
In November 2025, the Ministry of Health and its partners launched a nationwide campaign targeting both HPV and malaria.
Post-introduction assessments and supervisory visits following Phase 1 of the malaria vaccine roll-out, which kicked off in 2024 across six southeastern counties, had revealed that public understanding of the vaccine remained low. Ahead of Phase 2, health officials recognised an urgent need for stronger community engagement.
“We have people for whom the best way to work with them is through social media; that’s why we will be using social media influencers,” explained Amadu Bah, a member of the Communications and Health Promotion team at the Ministry of Health during the launch.
Credit: Tina S. Mehnpaine
They contracted Itoka alongside other top influencers and comedians, including the popular Mama Liberia comedy group. Messaging on both vaccines was developed by the Ministry and shared with the influencers.
“Social media influencers were engaged because of their ability to reach large audiences, particularly young people, parents and caregivers, with timely and credible information,” said Matirankie M. Kanneh from Jhpiego Liberia, which provided technical assistance to the Ministry during the campaign, speaking via WhatsApp.
Kanneh noted that influencers worked alongside traditional media to build public trust, debunk myths, and encourage uptake. “To support this effort, the Ministry of Health, with partners including Jhpiego, trained influencers and media practitioners to ensure consistent, accurate messaging, and strengthen rumour monitoring and community mobilisation efforts nationwide.”
Beauty queens vs. internet trolls
Influencers were split into two groups: some were to focus on HPV, and others focused on the malaria vaccine.
As the host of the Most Beautiful Girl in Liberia pageant, Itoka did not take on the HPV awareness mission without backup. The contestants joined the campaign, visiting marketplaces and other public places to educate people on the importance of the vaccine, and the danger of the cervical-cancer causing virus.
Beyond the public rallies, they shared videos online on Instagram and TikTok, generating millions of views and likes.
For Ateanah Togbah, a graduating senior pursuing a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice at the African Methodist Episcopal University, participating in the HPV awareness campaign was one of the most meaningful parts of her journey as a contestant on, and eventual winner of, the Most Beautiful Girl in Liberia pageant.
“Being part of a campaign that promotes awareness, prevention, and the health of young girls and women was both an honour and a responsibility I embraced wholeheartedly,” she said.
[Ateanah Togbah, criminal justice student and “Most Beautiful Girl in Liberia” 2025 winner]
For both Itoka and Togbah, the work was deeply personal. Both have come face-to-face with women and girls vulnerable to cervical cancer – a disease that sickens more than 700 women in Liberia annually. Close to 500 of those women die each year, for a staggering fatality rate of 66%.
A lifetime’s work
Participating in the campaign was a profound moment for Itoko and Togbah, not just as women, but as public figures.
“The campaign transformed me,” said Togbah. “It strengthened my confidence, deepened my sense of purpose and reinforced the importance of using my platform to serve others. It taught me that true beauty is reflected through compassion, leadership and action. Those lessons shaped my performance throughout the competition, allowing me to represent not only myself, but also the communities I hope to empower.”
The campaign reached 665,958 girls aged 9-18 with the protective vaccine, exceeding the target number.
While it’s hard to know how much of that figure is attributable to the efforts of the corps of social media influencers, it’s a success Itoko celebrates. “I am always available to work with the Ministry on any vaccination campaign,” she said.
Signs of battles still to come
And Itoko may yet be called on. She reports that their pro-vaccine messaging was not welcomed by everyone they met. Misinformation, such as the false rumour that the HPV vaccine prevents women and girls from bearing children, found them again and again during their engagement.
“But we told them it was a lie and educated them on how it can harm girls if they do not take the vaccine,” Itoko said. It’s her word – and all the science – against theirs.
A view of the Most Beautiful Girl in Liberia's Instagram grid
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