Background
In Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), cancer registry and screening data are often underutilized for public health decision-making due to limited analytical capacity and fragmented data systems. While population-based cancer registries generate valuable surveillance data, these data frequently remain siloed and disconnected from cervical cancer screening programmes, constraining their use for programme evaluation and policy development. In 2022, the International Agency for Research on Cancer, through the Global Initiative for Cancer Registry Development (GICR), established Centres of Expertise (CoEs) to strengthen local capacity and promote the translation of cancer registry data into public health action in SSA. The purpose of this abstract is to demonstrate, using the Johannesburg CoE, how capacity building and south-south collaboration can influence public health policies in a resource-limited setting.
Methods
Since 2022, the Johannesburg IARC–GICR CoE has conducted five structured training programmes focused on probabilistic record linkage, integration of cancer registry and cervical cancer screening data, epidemiological analyses, and data-to-policy translation. Participants were selected from cancer registries affiliated with the African Cancer Registry Network (AFCRN) based on the availability of cancer registry and cervical cancer screening data. Participants were trained online, and those who successfully completed the online training progressed to in-person linkage of real data, with continuous mentoring and data analysis. Those with public health identified gaps were enrolled in the data-to-policy training to learn how to translate policy recommendations into actionable policy briefs. Training outputs were assessed through successful data linkage, participant-led epidemiological analysis, scientific dissemination, and the development of policy-oriented products.
Results
Between 2022 and 2025, training in record linkage and applied analysis reached more than 200 participants from more than 11 SSA countries. Participants successfully linked population-based cancer registry data with cervical cancer screening data and conducted analyses addressing cervical cancer screening effectiveness, inequities, and system performance. Seven cancer registrars disseminated these analyses findings through international platforms, including the International Association of Cancer Registries and International Multidisciplinary HPV Congress (EUROGIN) conferences, among others. One study from the trained cohorts informed the amendment of the cervical cancer policy to introduce HPV DNA screening in place of Visual Inspection with Acetic Acid (VIA). Study recommendations from four different countries in SSA are now being translated into actionable policy briefs to inform national cervical cancer screening strategies and cancer control planning in their respective countries.
 Conclusion
The achievements demonstrate how targeted capacity building and south-south collaboration can transform cancer registry data from siloed surveillance outputs into actionable policy evidence. By equipping cancer registry personnel with practical record-linkage and policy-development skills, the programme enables locally led research and transforms siloed data into actionable policy briefs, strengthening the evidence-to-policy pathway for sustainable, data-driven cervical cancer control and country-level monitoring of elimination efforts across Sub-Saharan Africa.