19 African First Ladies to attend the Merck Foundation Annual Online Conference on April 27, 2021

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Senator, Dr Rasha Kelej, CEO of Merck Foundation and African First Ladies


The Merck Foundation will organize its annual conference, the 8th edition of “Merck Foundation Africa Asia Luminary” from April 27 to 29, 2021. 


The 8th edition of Merck Foundation (www.Merck-Foundation.com) Africa Asia Luminary will be co-chaired by SE ESTHER LUNGU, First Lady of the Republic of Zambia and Senator, Dr Rasha Kelej, CEO of Merck Foundation; The President of the Republic of Zambia, H.E. M. EDGAR LUNGU and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Merck KG, Prof. Dr. Frank Stangenberg-Haverkamp to officially inaugurate the “Merck Foundation Africa Asia Luminary” Online; 19 African First Ladies will be the guests of honor and the Ministers of Health, Gender, Information, Education and Science and Technology from 25 African Countries to participate; Over 2,000 healthcare providers, policy makers and media representatives from over 70 countries will benefit from the Luminaire. 

The Merck Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Merck Germany, will host its annual conference, the 8th edition of “Merck Foundation Africa Asia Luminary” from April 27-29, 2021 in partnership with the government of the Republic of Zambia. 

The conference will take place on a virtual platform and will be inaugurated by H.E. M. EDGAR LUNGU, President of Zambia with Prof. Dr. Frank Stangenberg-Haverkamp, ​​Chairman of the Board of Directors of E.Merck KG and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Merck Foundation, and is co-chaired by HE ESTHER LUNGU, First Lady of Zambia and Senator, Dr. Rasha Kelej, CEO of Merck Foundation. 

Senator Dr. Rasha Kelej, stressed: “We are proud to welcome our honored guests and keynote speakers, First Ladies from 19 African Countries and African Ministers from different sectors from over 25 countries. Together we will discuss our strategy to build healthcare capacity and establish a strong platform of specialized and trained medical experts to be the first in their country and define interventions to break the stigma of infertility and support girls' education. This annual science and social education program will also engage healthcare providers, academics and the media in open dialogue and deliberations on various topics with the aim of improving access to equitable healthcare solutions and quality. Following the Inauguration of the Luminaire on April 27, a high level meeting of the Merck Foundation First Ladies Initiative Committee will be organized with 19 African First Ladies to discuss health and social issues in order to 'ensure Social and Economic Development in Africa; and improve health care, media and outreach capacities inthose countries. The African First Ladies who will be present at the conference as guests of honor are: H.E. Mme ESTHER LUNGU, The First Lady of the Republic of Zambia Co-chair of the 8th edition of Merck Foundation Africa Asia Luminary Mrs ANA DIAS LOURENÇO, The First Lady of the Republic of Angola S.E. Mrs. NEO JANE MASISI, The First Lady of the Republic of Botswana S.E. Madame SIKA KABORE, The First Lady of Burkina Faso S.E. Madame ANGELINE NDAYISHIMIYE, The First Lady of the Republic of Burundi Madame BRIGITTE TOUADERA, The First Lady of the Central African Republic Madame DENISE NYAKERU TSHISEKEDI, The First Lady of the Democratic Republic of Congo Mrs FATOUMATTA BAH-BARROW, The First Lady of the Republic of The Gambia Mrs REBECCA AKUFO-ADDO, The First Lady of the Republic of Ghana Madame DJÈNÈ CONDÉ, The First Lady of the Republic of Guinea Mrs. CLAR MARIE WEAH, The First Lady of the Republic of Liberia Mrs. MONICA CHAKWERA, The First Lady of the Republic of Malawi S.E. Mrs ISAURA FERRÃO NYUSI, The First Lady of the Republic of Mozambique Mrs. MONICA GEINGOS, The First Lady of the Republic of Namibia Dr. Mrs. AISHA MUHAMMADU BUHARI, The First Lady of the Federal Republic of Nigeria Mrs FATIMA MAADA BIO, The First Lady of the Republic of Sierra Leone Ms. AUXILLIA MNANGAGWA, The First Lady of the Republic of Zimbabwe “I look forward to welcoming my dear sisters, Her Excellencies, to the conference. In addition, I am also very happy that the conference will also mark an important occasion; the 4th anniversary of the Merck Foundation, ”added Senator Dr. Kelej. 

On April 28, the Merck-MARS Foundation Africa Research Summit will be held where a high-level roundtable with the Ministers of Health, Science and Technology, Education, Information and Gender and Researchers MARS will take place with the aim of empowering young African researchers, enhancing their research capacity and empowerment in STEM. On the third day, April 29, a Merck Foundation Health Media Training will be organized for the African and Latin American media fraternity to highlight the important role the media play in breaking the stigma around infertility. , raising awareness about preventing infertility and empowering girls and women through education.

Other important scientific sessions in different medical fields will also be held in parallel on days 2 and 3 of the Luminary. During Merck Foundation Africa Asia Luminary, in order to contribute to the social and economic development of Africa and Asia, more than 2000 healthcare providers, policy makers, academics, researchers and health media from more than 70 countries from Africa, Asia and Latin America enjoy the conference de three days which contains valuable educational and social sessions in four languages; English, French, Spanish and Portuguese by the best international experts in Diabetes, Fertility, Oncology, Women's Health, Cardiology, Endocrinology, Respiratory and Acute Medicine and health media with the aim of raising awareness about health and improving awareness disease burden, early detection and prevention, build healthcare capacity and improve access to equitable and quality healthcare solutions on three continents. 

Luminaire 2021 will also mark the announcement of two awards for media fraternity, the Merck Foundation “More Than a Mother” Media Recognition Awards 2021 and the Merck Foundation “Wear The Masks With Care” Media Recognition Award» 2021 ; two prizes for the fashion fraternity, the 2021 Merck Foundation "More Than a Mother" Fashion Prizes and the 2021 Merck Foundation "Make Your Own Mask" Fashion Prizes; in addition to the 2021 Merck Foundation Film Awards "More Than a Mother" and the 2021 Merck Foundation Film Awards "More Than a Mother". 

The countries participating in the 8th Africa Asia Luminaire include: Angola, Bangladesh, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Canada, Central African Republic, Cambodia, Chad, Côte d'Ivoire, Republic of Congo, Democratic Republic of 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, Gambia, Togo, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, Uganda, United States, Vietnam, Zambia, Zimbabwe and more.

The 8th edition of Merck Foundation Africa Asia Luminary will be broadcast live on April 27 from 2 p.m. to 6.30 p.m. PST and April 28 and 29, 2021 from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. KST, @ Merck Foundation Facebook page (https : //bit.ly/32FbhMR) and Senator, Dr. Rasha Kelej Facebook page (https://bit.ly/2RMIns0).

Join the conversation on our social media platforms below and make your voice heard:

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Website: www.Merck-Foundation.com

Download the Merck Foundation app: https://bit.ly/2MmNvAU

About Merck Foundation:

Merck Foundation, established in 2017, is the philanthropic arm of Merck KGaA Germany. It aims to improve the health and well-being of people and to advance their lives through science and technology. Our efforts are mainly focused on improving access to innovative healthcare solutions in underserved communities, building scientific and health research capacities and empowering people in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics), with an emphasis on women and youth. All Merck Foundation press releases are distributed by email as soon as they become available on the Merck Foundation website. Please go to www.Merck-Foundation.com for more information and / or to register online: Merck Foundation (www.Merck-Foundation.com), Facebook (bit.ly/2MU6Fht), Twitter (bit.ly/ 3scVf8t), Instagram (bit.ly/3boJ0jr), YouTube (bit.ly/3sf4aWX) and Flicker (bit.ly/3snPHZ8).

Cassien Tribunal Aungane, Editor

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