Prof. Dr. Frank Stangenberg-Haverkamp, Senator Dr. Rasha Kelej and African First Ladies of Botswana, Burundi, Cabo Verde, Central African Republic, The Gambia, Ghana, Liberia, Malawi, Democratic Republic of São Tomé and Príncipe, Zimbabwe, Democratic Republic of Congo, to inaugurate 10^th Edition of Merck Foundation Africa Asia Luminary 2023 (http://www.Merck-Foundation.com); More than 10,000 participants including healthcare providers, policymakers, researchers, academia and media representatives from 70 English, French, Spanish and Portuguese speaking countries attended the Luminary through hybrid model to benefit from five parallel  scientific and social sessions to  advance healthcare capacity and awareness in 42 critical and underserved medical specialties; Celebrating 6th Anniversary of Merck Foundation and marking 11-year journey of their development programs, during 2023 Luminary; Merck Foundation reported the impact of providing 1700 scholarships to doctors from 50 countries in 42 critical and underserved specialties such as; Oncology, Diabetes, Cardiovascular Preventive, Endocrinology, Fertility, Embryology, Reproductive Care, Respiratory Care, Acute and Intensive Care, Neonatal Care, Pediatric Emergency, Advanced Surgery, Microbiology & Infectious Diseases, Internal Medicine, Ophthalmology, Psychiatry, Palliative Care and Pain Management and more; Merck Foundation marked Cancer Awareness Month during their annual conference.

Merck Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Merck KGaA Germany, conducted their annual conference, the 10^th Edition of “Merck Foundation Africa Asia Luminary”, in partnership with Tata Memorial Centre and Department of Atomic Energy, Ministry of External Affairs, Ministry of Home Affairs, Ministry of Health of India, State Protocol Office of Government of Maharashtra and Krishna  World University, Karad, on the 18^th of October 2023 in Mumbai, India. The conference was inaugurated by Prof. Dr. Frank Stangenberg-Haverkamp, Chairman of Merck Foundation Board of Trustees, and Senator, Dr. Rasha Kelej, CEO of Merck Foundation and Chairperson of Merck Foundation Africa Asia Luminary, along with African First Ladies of 11 countries;

• H.E. Mrs. NEO JANE MASISI, The First Lady of the Republic of Botswana
• H.E. Madam ANGELINE NDAYISHIMIYE, The First Lady of the Republic of Burundi
• H.E. Dr. DÉBORA KATISA CARVALHO, The First Lady of the Republic of Cabo Verde
• H.E. Madam BRIGITTE TOUADERA, The First Lady of Central African Republic
• H.E. Mrs. FATOUMATTA BAH-BARROW, The First Lady of the Republic of The Gambia
• H.E. Mrs. REBECCA AKUFO-ADDO, The First Lady of the Republic of Ghana
• H.E. Mrs. CLAR MARIE WEAH, The First Lady of the Republic of Liberia
• H.E. Mrs. MONICA CHAKWERA, The First Lady of the Republic of Malawi
• H.E. Mrs. MARIA DE FATIMA VILA NOVA, The First Lady of the Democratic Republic of São Tomé and Príncipe
• H.E. Amai Dr. AUXILLIA MNANGAGWA, The First Lady of the Republic of Zimbabwe
• H.E. Madam DENISE NYAKERU TSHISEKEDI, The First Lady of the Democratic Republic of The Congo

Senator Dr. Rasha Kelej, CEO of Merck Foundation and Chairperson of Merck Foundation Africa Asia Luminary emphasized, “I am very proud to welcome our Guests of Honors and Keynote Speakers, the First Ladies of Africa and Ambassadors of “More Than a Mother” Campaign, for our annual conference that we have conducted first time in India. Together, we shared experiences and discussed the impact of our programs to transform patient care and raise awareness on a wide range of sensitive and critical social and health. Today we are also marking together Cancer Awareness Month, it is great to remember that Merck Foundation provided 138 scholarships of Oncology Training in many sub-specialties to doctors from 37 African countries, many of them have become the first oncologists in their countries. We are making history together in Africa, with our Ambassadors, First Ladies of Africa and our partners, Tata Hospital and Krishna University.”

Prof. Dr. Frank Stangenberg-Haverkamp Chairman of both of Executive Board of E.Merck KG and Merck Foundation Board of Trustees expressed “At Merck Foundation, our goal is improving overall health and well-being by building healthcare capacity and by providing access to quality & equitable healthcare solutions in the Africa, Asia and beyond. I would like to thank our partners, African First Ladies and Health Experts, Policy Makers, Government Officials, Academia and Media from more than 70 countries to join hands with us in order to realize the vision of Merck Foundation that “Everyone can lead a Healthy and Happy life.”

“I am proud to share that Merck Foundation has provided more than 1700 scholarships to young doctors from 50 countries in 42 critical and underserved specialties such as Oncology and Cancer care, Diabetes, Endocrinology, Cardiovascular, Fertility Care, Embryology, Sexual & Reproductive Medicine, Internal Medicine, Respiratory Medicine, Acute Medicine, Critical Care, Pediatric Emergency, Gastroenterology, Rheumatology, Clinical Psychiatry, Urology, Ophthalmology, General Surgery, Trauma & Orthopedic, Dermatology, Neonatal Care, Pain Management, Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases, Advanced Surgical Practice, Neuroimaging for Research and more. Many of them are becoming the first specialists in their countries. Many of these scholarships were conducted in India where a state of art clinical training was provided at the prestigious training institutions of our partners such as Tata Memorial Center, Manipal University, Maharashtra University, Krishna University, Indra IVF Training and more. Therefore, we are very happy to be this year in India to celebrate our 10 years partnership with our respectable Indian partners”, added Senator Kelej.  

During the 10^th Edition of Merck Foundation Africa Asia Luminary, the First Ladies of 11 African Countries, also the Ambassadors of Merck Foundation “More Than a Mother”, celebrated the 6th Anniversary of Merck Foundation and marked the 11-year journey of Merck Foundation development programs that started in 2012.

During the day 1 of the conference, the Plenary Session of Merck Foundation Africa Asia Luminary 2023 was held, during which a high-level panel meeting of Merck Foundation First Ladies Initiative Summit was conducted.

Day 2 of the conference will have important five parallel Medical and Scientific Sessions on Oncology, Diabetes & Hypertension, Fertility and Reproductive Care, and medical capacity building of other specialties such as; respiratory, acute care, emergency pediatric and neonatal care and more. Additionally, a community awareness session, the Merck Foundation Health Media Training session will also be conducted for the African journalists, to emphasize on the important role that they play to influence the community to create a cultural shift with the aim to Break Infertility Stigma, Support Girl Education, Stop GBV, End Child Marriage, End FGM, and Women Empowerment at all levels.

Countries participating in the 10^th Edition of Merck Foundation Africa Asia Luminary include:

Angola, Bangladesh, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Canada, Central Africa Republic, Cambodia, Chad, Côte d'Ivoire, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, France, Gabon, Germany, Ghana, Guinea – Bissau, Guinea – Conakry, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Malawi, Malaysia, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexico, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, Niger, Nigeria, Peru, Philippines, Russia, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Tanzania, Thailand, The Gambia, Togo, Tunisia, U.A.E, UK, Uganda, US, Vietnam, Zambia, Zimbabwe and more.

The 10^th Edition of Merck Foundation Africa Asia Luminary 2023 was streamed live on the social media handles of Merck Foundation (https://apo-opa.info/3Ykd3hH) and Senator, Dr. Rasha Kelej (https://apo-opa.info/3SfA0AF).

Link to the Facebook live steam of Inaugural Session of Merck Foundation Africa Asia Luminary & African First Ladies High Level Panel: https://apo-opa.info/3RYXLPa

Summarizing Merck Foundation’s initiatives and impact:

Merck Foundation is transforming the Patient care landscape and making history together with its partners in Africa, Asia, and beyond, through:

• 1700+ Scholarships provided by Merck Foundation for doctors from 50 Countries in 42 critical and underserved medical specialties.  

Merck Foundation is also creating a culture shift and breaking the silence about a wide range of social and health issues in Africa and underserved communities through:

• 3000+ Media Persons from more than 30 countries trained to better raise awareness about different social and health issues

• 8 Different Awards launched annually for best media coverage, fashion designers, films, and songs

• Around 30 songs to address health and social issues, by local singers across Africa

• 8 Children’s Storybooks in three languages - English, French, and Portuguese

• 7 Awareness Animation films in four languages - English, French, Portuguese and Spanish to raise awareness about prevention and early detection of Diabetes & Hypertension and supporting girl education.

• Pan African TV Program "Our Africa by Merck Foundation” addressing Social and Health Issues in Africa through “Fashion and ART with Purpose” Community

• 1000+ Girls from 15 African countries supported through scholarships or school items, annually.

• 12 Social Media Channels with more than 5 Million Followers.