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Merck Foundation <\/strong>(https:\/\/www.Merck-Foundation.com), the philanthropic arm of Merck KGaA Germany announced the winners of \u201cMerck More Than a Mother\u201d Fashion Awards<\/strong> in partnership with H.E. REBECCA AKUFO-ADDO, The First Lady of Ghana and Ambassador of \u2018Merck More Than a Mother\u2019<\/strong>. The award winners who are students at Ghana Fashion Academies got the opportunity to exhibit their designs at the Fashion Show held during the 6th Edition of Merck Africa Asia Luminary<\/strong>, which was attended by African First Ladies<\/strong> and Ministers of Health, Gender, Information, Education and Science<\/strong> from more than 25 African Countries<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n Dr. Rasha Kelej, CEO of Merck Foundation and President, Merck More Than a Mother<\/strong> emphasized \u201cWe initiated the \u201cMerck More Than a Mother\u201d Fashion Awards across all Africa with the aim to deliver strong and influential messages to empower infertile women and say \u2018No to Infertility Stigma\u2019<\/strong> through their designs hoping to create meaningful fashion trend to educate their communities that \u2018Fertility is a Shared Responsibility<\/strong>\u2019, this fashion award is part of Merck more than a Mother community awareness. And We are happy today to acknowledge Ghana fashion award winners and looking forward to celebrating the rest of the winners across Africa\u201d.<\/p>\n The awards attracted many applications, out of which, 6 best designs were chosen<\/strong> by the \u2018Merck More Than a Mother\u2019 committee along with The Office of First Lady of Ghana<\/strong>.<\/p>\n H.E. MADAM REBECCA AKUFO-ADDO, <\/strong>The First Lady of Ghana and Ambassador of Merck More Than a Mother<\/strong> stated, \u201cIt was very nice to see the designs prepared by our future fashion designers. The creativity they showcased through their designs was applaudable. The message came out clearly through their work.\u201d<\/p>\n The winners of the \u201cMerck More Than a Mother\u201d Fashion Awards of Ghana <\/strong>are:<\/p>\n The awards winners were granted $500 each to execute and showcase their designs. The winners were greatly welcomed by African First Ladies<\/strong> and Ambassadors of Merck More than a Mother,<\/strong> who handed them the awards themselves during the ceremony.<\/p>\n \u201cNo designer has ever, or would ever, say that he or she wanted to make things difficult for women. Fashion industry has already got enough flakes for being superficial. Fashion designers should be the story teller of their community, they should be the voice of the voiceless. Therefore, these awards are our efforts to change the perception and create a meaningful fashion trend aiming to break the silence and educate our communities that Women are more than just Mothers and Men are more than just fathers<\/strong>.\u201d added Dr. Rasha Kelej.<\/strong><\/p>\n Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Merck Foundation.<\/i><\/p>\n Join the conversation on our social media platforms below and let your voice be heard:<\/strong> About \u2018Merck More Than a Mother\u2019 campaign:<\/strong> With \u201cMerck More than a mother\u201d, we have initiated a cultural shift to de-stigmatize infertility on all levels: By improving awareness, training local experts in the fields of fertility care and media, building advocacy in cooperation with African First Ladies and women leaders and by supporting childless women in starting their own small businesses. It\u2019s all about giving every woman the respect and the help she deserves to live a fulfilling life, with or without a child.<\/p>\n The Ambassadors of \u201cMerck More Than a Mother\u201d are:<\/strong><\/p>\n H.E. NEO JANE MASISI, The First Lady of Botswana<\/p>\n<\/td>\n H.E. FATOUMATTA BAH-BARROW, The First Lady of The Gambia<\/p>\n<\/td>\n H.E. ISAURA FERR\u00c3O NYUSI, The First Lady of Mozambique<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n H.E DENISE NKURUNZIZA, The First Lady of Burundi<\/p>\n<\/td>\n H.E. COND\u00c9 DJENE, The First Lady of Guinea Conakry<\/p>\n<\/td>\n H.E. MONICA GEINGOS, The First Lady of Namibia<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n H.E. BRIGITTE TOUADERA, The First Lady of Central African Republic<\/p>\n<\/td>\n H.E. CLAR WEAH, The First Lady of Liberia<\/p>\n<\/td>\n H.E A\u00cfSSATA ISSOUFOU MAHAMADO, The First Lady of Niger<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n H.E. HINDA DEBY ITNO, The First Lady of Chad<\/p>\n<\/td>\n H.E. PROFESSOR GERTRUDE MUTHARIKA, The First Lady of Malawi<\/p>\n<\/td>\n H.E FATIMA MAADA, The First Lady of Sierra Leone<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n H.E. ANTOINETTE SASSOU-NGUESSO, The First Lady of Congo Brazzaville<\/p>\n<\/td>\n H.E. DR. MAESAIAH THABANE, The First Lady of Lesotho<\/p>\n<\/td>\n H.E. AUXILLIA MNANGAGW, The First Lady of Zimbabwe<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n H.E. REBECCA AKUFO-ADDO, The First Lady of Ghana<\/p>\n<\/td>\n H.E. KE\u00cfTA AMINATA MAIGA, The First Lady of Mali<\/p>\n<\/td>\n H.E. ESTHER LUNGU, The First Lady of Zambia<\/p>\n Merck Foundation is making history in many African countries where they never had fertility specialists or specialized fertility clinics before \u2018Merck More Than a Mother\u2019 intervention, to train the first fertility specialists such as; in Sierra Leone, Liberia, The Gambia, Niger, Chad, Guinea, Ethiopia and Uganda.\u00a0<\/p>\n Merck Foundation launched new innovative initiatives to sensitize local communities about infertility prevention, male infertility with the aim to break the stigma of infertility and empowering infertile women as part of Merck more than a Mother COMMUNITY AWARENESS CAPAIGN, such as;<\/p>\n About Merck Foundation:<\/strong> About Merck:<\/strong> Scientific exploration and responsible entrepreneurship have been key to Merck\u2019s technological and scientific advances. This is how Merck has thrived since its founding in 1668. The founding family remains the majority owner of the publicly listed company. Merck holds the global rights to the Merck name and brand. The only exceptions are the United States and Canada, where the business sectors of Merck operate as EMD Serono in healthcare, MilliporeSigma in life science, and EMD Performance Materials.<\/p>\n\n
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\n\u201cMerck More Than a Mother\u201d is a strong movement that aims to empower infertile women through access to information, education and change of mind-sets. This powerful campaign supports governments in defining policies to enhance access to regulated, safe and effective fertility care. It defines interventions to break the stigma around infertile women and raises awareness about infertility prevention, management and male infertility. In partnership with African First Ladies, Ministries of Health, Information, Education & Gender, academia, policymakers, International fertility societies, media and art, the initiative also provides training for fertility specialists and embryologists to build and advance fertility care capacity in Africa and developing countries.<\/p>\n\n\n
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\nThe Merck Foundation (www.Merck-Foundation.com), established in 2017, is the philanthropic arm of Merck KGaA Germany, aims to improve the health and wellbeing of people and advance their lives through science and technology. Our efforts are primarily focused on improving access to quality & equitable healthcare solutions in underserved communities, building healthcare and scientific research capacity and empowering people in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) with a special focus on women and youth. All Merck Foundation press releases are distributed by e-mail at the same time they become available on the Merck Foundation Website.\u00a0Please visit www.Merck-Foundation.com to read more. To know more, reach out to our social media: Merck Foundation<\/a>\u00a0(https:\/\/www.Merck-Foundation.com),\u00a0Facebook<\/a>\u00a0(https:\/\/bit.ly\/347DsTd),\u00a0Twitter<\/a>\u00a0(https:\/\/bit.ly\/2REHwaK),\u00a0Instagram<\/a>\u00a0(https:\/\/bit.ly\/2t3E0fX),\u00a0YouTube<\/a>\u00a0(https:\/\/bit.ly\/2E05GVg) and\u00a0Flicker<\/a>\u00a0(https:\/\/bit.ly\/2RJjWtH).<\/p>\n
\nMerck (www.MerckGroup.com), a leading science and technology company, operates across healthcare, life science and performance materials. Around 56,000 employees work to make a positive difference to millions of people\u2019s lives every day by creating more joyful and sustainable ways to live. From advancing gene editing technologies and discovering unique ways to treat the most challenging diseases to enabling the intelligence of devices \u2013 the company is everywhere. In 2018, Merck generated sales of \u20ac 14.8 billion in 66 countries.<\/p>\n