HPV self-testing in the eyes of a photographer

Recently we hired Nafkot Gebeyehu, an Ethiopia-based photographer, to capture our new HPV self-testing campaigns in Ethiopia. In the world of fast-paced media and Instagram reels, I can say with certainty that photos are still worth one thousand words. I met with Nafkot over Zoom prior to her trip into the field. We connected on our love for photography and visual storytelling. I went over my creative brief, with a recommended ‘shot-list’ such as: women receiving test kits, community health promotors interacting with our staff, as well as ‘not so glamorous” shots of the lab and clinical processes. 

What we received went completely beyond my ‘shot list’. Nafkot is able to capture any environment—from a rural health center in Yirgalem, to screening devices, to women waiting in line—and make it absolutely stunning. As mentioned in a recent interview with Arete Gazette, her approach is “confidence and trust.” You can feel the comfort of women in front of her lens. I had no idea so many would be excited to hold a test kit in front of a camera, knowing that it could potentially save her life, her friends’ lives, and heal communities that are still losing women from cervical cancer, which is a completely preventable disease when caught early. 

We are so thankful for Nafkot and hope these images give you a small piece of what it’s like in the field. A brief glimpse into a world where all women have access to life-saving health care, and the joy that follows.

See more of her work here

“The simplicity and speed of the approach resulted in the staff seeing 370 women in the first 4 days of implementation. Word of mouth is perhaps the most successful means of recruiting women in Ethiopia. Given the positive responses from the women we saw, we anticipate these numbers rising rapidly as our systems continue to improve. GfH staff member Aster Tilihun described a woman who, on our first screening day, was so comfortable with her experience that she went back to her village and rounded up a group of women to return to the health center and get screened themselves. Women are receptive, our staff is thrilled and the future is looking bright!”

-Ellen Starr, Executive Director

Thank you for following along,

Sarah Annay, Communications Coordinator