Merck Sharp & Dohme Limited (MSD) is the UK subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., of Whitehouse Station, New Jersey, USA, a global, research-driven pharmaceutical company dedicated to putting patients first.  Established in 1891, MSD discovers, develops, manufactures and markets a wide range of innovative medicines and vaccines to improve human health.

human development

Since 2000, MSD has been working in partnership with the Government of Botswana and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to deliver the first comprehensive HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment programme ever undertaken in Africa. 

The African Comprehensive HIV/AIDS Partnership (ACHAP) supports, develops and finances effective, sustainable and locally driven HIV/AIDS programmes in Botswana.  These encourage HIV testing, provide education, establish treatment centres and train health workers.  Originally established to run over five years, funding for ACHAP has now been extended to 2009.

While more work remains to be done, ACHAP has been extraordinarily successful in fulfilling its mission to date. The country currently has more than 90,000 patients on anti-retroviral therapy, representing at least 80 percent of people who need treatment. And  Botswana is 1 of only 3 countries in Africa to have achieved its treatment goals under World Health Organization 3 x 5 guidelines.

In 2007, ACHAP received the Absa Healthcare Initiative Award in the category Public Private Partnership during the Pan African Health Congress  based on the partnerships innovation, impact and sustainability.

In 1987, MSD established the MECTIZAN Donation Program, a public/private partnership that, through the donation of MECTIZAN, works to improve lives and prevent blindness for millions of people at risk of river blindness in Africa, Latin America and Yemen.  In 1998, the program was expanded to include the prevention of lymphatic filariasis in Africa (and Yemen) where the two diseases co-exist. 

2007 marked the 20th anniversary of the MECTIZAN Donation Program. To date, the program has donated more than 530 million doses of MECTIZAN, valued at some $2.7 billion. Recognized for its unparalleled success, the program - the longest-running medicine donation commitment in history - currently reaches approximately 70 million people each year for the treatment of river blindness. In December 2007, the World Bank and MSD announced an initiative to raise U.S. $50 million to help eliminate river blindness in 28 African countries. Merck has pledged up to $25 million - about half of the funding needed over the next eight years.

In December 2007, MSD received a Scrip Award in the category of Corporate Social Responsibility for the Mectizan Donation Program.  

As part of MSD's  commitment to the GAVI Alliance, the Company initiated the Merck Vaccine Network - Africa (MVN-A) in 2003. A multi-year philanthropic initiative, MVN-A supports the development of sustainable immunization training centers in Africa by providing mid- to high-level immunization program managers with hands-on training in vaccine management and immunization services. Currently, there are centers in Kenya, Mali, Uganda and Zambia.

In 2001, the International Council of Nurses (ICN) and MSD launched the Mobile Library Project, a partnership between MSD, ICN and Elsevier, the world’s leading publisher of scientific textbooks. The project provides mobile libraries with selected books – including donated copies of the Merck Manual – that bring up-to-date information on family and community health, disease prevention, health promotion and services training to nurses in African countries with limited access to reference materials and expert advice.  Altogether, the libraries have reached tens of thousands of people in more than 300 clinical settings in 17 countries.

In 2005, collaborating with the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), the project was expanded to nurses and health workers working with refugees in Tanzania and Zambia.  To date, 62 libraries have been established in refugee camps and settlements and in the local hosting districts in Tanzania and Zambia and approximately 1,600 nurses and health workers have participated in related training activities. 

In 2007, MSD was the inaugural recipient of the "Partners in Development Award," created by the International Council of Nurses to recognize foundations, corporations, NGOs or other groups that have demonstrated outstanding leadership and investment in nursing and health care capacity building. 

governance and transparency

MSD actively supports and promotes organizations, such as Transparency International and the OECD Convention Against Corruption and Bribery, that work to raise awareness and promote ethical business practices.   Since 1995, the Merck Company Foundation has supported the creation of four ethics centers around the world – including the Ethics Institute of South Africa which was launched in November 2000 with an initial focus on ethics in healthcare.

For more information, please visit www.merck.com/cr