Merck & Co, Inc.
In 1987, Merck pledged to donate indefinitely their antiobiotic Mectizan to the fight against onchocerciasis in Africa. The Merck Mectizan Donation Program was established to distribute the drug, creating one of the largest ever public-private partnerships. Since 1988, Merck has donated more than 300 million treatments. The donation has fueled the success of both the Onchocerciasis Control Program – which has halted transmission in 11 west African countries and prevented 600,000 cases of blindness – and the African Programme for Onchocerciasis Control, which aims to eliminate river blindness in central and east Africa. Merck has reconfirmed its commitment to indefinite donation of the drug, and in 1998 broadened its mandate to include the donation of Mectizan for the treatment of lymphatic filariasis in co-endemic areas.
