90 Minutes with Senator, Dr Rasha Kelej.
I am happy that we have successfully conducted the third edition of the engagement and impact report of our programs, titled, ‘90 Minutes with Senator, Dr. Rasha Kelej, The Merck Foundation CEO’ 2024 with the aim to update and discuss their programs and its impact and build advocacy to break infertility stigma, support girl education and transform patient care. The session showcased my engagement with Media Members, Merck Foundation Alumni, Merck Foundation Award Winners, Social Media Followers and other stakeholders, through a Videoconference to address several critical health and social issues, in addition to sharing my long experience, challenges, solutions and success stories of Merck Foundation with audiences in social media.
During the session, I had addressed several critical health and social issues, sharing her extensive experience, challenges, solutions, and Merck Foundation’s success stories with audiences on social media. I am thrilled by the overwhelming acknowledgment extended by all. I deeply appreciate everyone for attending this session to discuss my perspectives, work and life experiences. Throughout this session, I addressed various questions and provided update on our programs, their impact, and our future plans. It is my hope that the information shared will prove beneficial to many, inspiring them to realize their full potential and pursue their aspirations in life. As part of this important meeting, participants explored mypersonal and professional sides through questions about me; likes, dislikes, hobbies, personality, education, early life, career, achievements, success stories and challenges she overcame. Additionally, my vision and plans for achieving the objectives of the Merck Foundation, as well as my personal goals, were discussed. The session was attended by over 150 participants from 36 countries.
Every year, the program adds innovation and fun to its theme for adding a further sense of personal touch for the audience. This year, the program also included a special CEO segment ‘What’s the story’, where I had narrated the sentiment and revealed the tale behind certain photos over the past 12 years since she started her role in Africa. This was one of my most favorite part of the session was when I was asked to mention the story behind few photos of my country visits and activities. It made me revisit my journey and beautiful memories in our beautiful continent.
As you know that I from Egypt and Africa. I was aware of the issue and this larger change required some kind of discipline, which is a part of my personality and approach since the beginning. Hence, I knew I will empower women every day, be consistent towards achieving the goals of this campaign and I was prepared for it. Until today, we worked with 24 Africa’s First Ladies as ambassadors of “More Than a Mother” campaign, and this was a very important platform. We also released children’s storybooks and animation films to influence children with the aim to build their character and change of mindset while growing up.
Now, if you even search ‘Infertility’ in Africa, you will find thousands of articles and stories online. So, we have come a long way and reached a great level of creating awareness on infertility issues in Africa and we will continue to do so.
Please watch the Facebook Livestream of ’90 Minutes with Senator, Dr. Rasha Kelej’ here:
After the success of the third season of this meeting, I am excited for the next season, to be able to engage with everyone . Stay tuned to know about the next session!
Kind regards,
Senator, Dr. Rasha Kelej,
CEO of Merck Foundation,
One of the Most Influential African Women
(2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 & 2024)
