Merck Foundation Appoints Nigeria’s First Lady as ‘More Than a Mother’ Ambassador

Merck Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Merck KGaA Germany, has appointed Her Excellency Senator Oluremi Tinubu, CON, First Lady of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, as their “More Than a Mother” Ambassador. The appointment was confirmed during a high-level meeting held in Abuja with Prof. Dr Frank Stangenberg Haverkamp, Chairman of Merck Foundation Board of Trustees, and Senator Dr Rasha Kelej, Chief Executive Officer of Merck Foundation.

The partnership aims to build healthcare capacity, support girl education, and break infertility stigma across Nigeria. Under the initiative, Merck Foundation has already awarded 63 scholarships to Nigerian doctors in 42 critical and underserved specialties, with further commitments to expand training and healthcare delivery.

Senator Dr Rasha Kelej remarked: “It was a privilege to officially appoint my dear sister H.E. Senator Oluremi Tinubu as Ambassador of ‘Merck Foundation More Than a Mother’. We are committed to providing scholarships for Nigerian doctors, enhancing patient care, supporting girl education, and tackling infertility stigma. To date, 63 scholarships have been provided, and we are determined to scale up these efforts.”

The First Lady expressed her enthusiasm for the partnership, stating: “I am truly pleased to welcome Merck Foundation’s Chairman and CEO. Their programmes, especially the Educating Linda initiative for girl education and the scholarship scheme for healthcare capacity building, are highly impactful. I am fully committed to scaling up these initiatives to benefit our people.”

The scholarships provided cover a wide range of medical disciplines. These include fertility, embryology, reproductive medicine, diabetes, cardiovascular care, oncology, psychiatry, dermatology, critical care and rheumatology, among others. Many of the trained doctors are expected to establish specialised clinics in their communities, significantly strengthening Nigeria’s health system.

In addition, Merck Foundation has supported the education of 20 underprivileged Nigerian schoolgirls and conducted three editions of Online Health Media Training to empower local journalists to tackle social and health issues, including gender-based violence, female genital mutilation, child marriage, infertility stigma, and women’s empowerment.

Prof. Dr Frank Stangenberg Haverkamp said: “Our aim is to improve overall health and wellbeing by building healthcare capacity across Africa, Asia and other developing countries. Globally, we have provided over 2,282 scholarships across 53 countries, and we are proud to see Nigeria benefiting from this long-term vision.”

As part of the partnership with Nigeria’s First Lady, Merck Foundation has also launched eight award categories in 2025 for media, musicians, filmmakers, fashion designers, and students, focusing on themes such as “More Than a Mother” and “Diabetes & Hypertension”. These awards are designed to inspire creativity and raise awareness around key social and health challenges.

Entries for the awards are open until 30 September 2025 (for More Than a Mother categories) and 30 October 2025 (for Diabetes & Hypertension categories). Submissions can be sent to submit@merck-foundation.com.

For more information, visit www.Merck-Foundation.com.