Senator, Dr. Rasha Kelej with the First Ladies of Liberia, Malawi, Burundi, The Gambia, Sao Tome, Botswana, Cabo Verde, Zimbabwe, and Ghana during the Merck Foundation First Ladies Initiative Summit 2023 in India.
The Merck Foundation First Ladies initiative – MFFLI committee was conducted on the 2nd day of the 10th Edition of “Merck Foundation Africa Asia Luminary” in India. The conference was inaugurated by me, Prof. Dr. Frank Stangenberg-Haverkamp, Chairman of Merck Foundation Board of Trustees, and Senator, Foundation and Chairperson of Merck Foundation Africa Asia Luminary, along with Africa’s 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
Link to the Merck Foundation Africa First Ladies Initiative – MFFLI
I am very proud to conduct Merck Foundation Africa First ladies Initiatives – MFFLI, together with our Guests of Honor and Keynote Speakers, the First Ladies of 11 African Countries, who are also the Ambassadors of Merck Foundation “More Than a Mother”, to discuss the 2024 strategy to build healthcare & that media capacity and raise awareness on a wide range of sensitive and critical social and health issues like Supporting Girl Education, Ending Child Marriage, Stopping GBV, Breaking Infertility Stigma, Ending FGM, Women Empowerment, and Diabetes Awareness. Watch all the Speeches
Together with the First Ladies, we have provided more than 1700 scholarships to young doctors from 50 countries in 42 critical and underserved specialties till today. This is a great milestone of transforming the patient care landscape and leading Africa to a better, healthier and stronger future. I am happy to hear from my dear sisters their experiences and success stories in their respective countries, together we will be an important part of Africa’s legacy.
Kind Regards,
Senator, Dr. Rasha Kelej,
CEO of Merck Foundation and Chairperson of Merck Foundation Africa Asia Luminary.
