DAVOS, Switzerland--(BUSINESS WIRE)--MSD, known as Merck & Co., Inc., Kenilworth, N.J., U.S.A., inside the United States and Canada, announced today its $10 million commitment to the Global Financing Facility (GFF) in support of Every Woman Every Child to improve maternal and child health in low- and lower-middle-income countries worldwide through its MSD for Mothers initiative. Through the GFF – a multi-stakeholder partnership hosted by the World Bank Group – countries are aiming to make a much greater impact on the lives of their most vulnerable citizens, with the goal of preventing an estimated 3.8 million maternal deaths, 101 million child deaths and 21 million stillbirths by 2030.

“Women are the cornerstone of a healthy and prosperous world. When a woman survives pregnancy and childbirth, her family, community and nation thrive,” said Kenneth C. Frazier, chairman and chief executive officer, MSD. “Our partnership with the GFF demonstrates how the private sector can play a unique role in helping to improve maternal and child health worldwide. We look forward to contributing our resources and expertise to the GFF and its partner organizations to work toward the common goal of ending preventable maternal and child deaths.”

The contribution to the GFF Trust Fund – the first from the private sector – will be used for innovative financing and public-private partnerships to scale up high-impact interventions to help women and children to survive and thrive through critical periods of life: birth, the early years and adolescence. MSD’s commitment advances the mission of MSD for Mothers, the company’s 10-year, $500 million global initiative to end the tragedy of women dying from complications of pregnancy and childbirth. In addition to financial support, MSD will provide business expertise to strengthen this multi-stakeholder partnership.

GFF partners include, in addition to the GFF implementing countries, the World Bank Group; the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation; Gavi; the Vaccine Alliance; the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria; the United Nations; and the governments of Canada, Norway, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States.

“Private sector partners, like MSD through its MSD for Mothers initiative, are leading the way by supporting the GFF,” said Mariam Claeson, director of the GFF. “With the private sector and with all GFF partners, countries are building healthier futures for women, children and adolescents – and donors are getting even greater results for their money.”

A total of 62 low- and lower-middle-income countries with high levels of maternal and child mortality are eligible to receive grants from the GFF Trust Fund; the GFF is currently active in 16 countries around the world. In each GFF country, partners are aligning their funding to support one country-driven investment case and strategy that will strengthen the health system by focusing on high-impact, fiscally efficient solutions.

With the financial assistance and technical expertise of corporations like MSD, GFF countries will develop innovative financing mechanisms to mobilize private sector capital, facilitating partnerships between global companies and countries and leveraging private sector capabilities to deliver better health results.

“You can't have healthy children without healthy mothers, and the future of every country depends on having both,” World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim said. “We need the support of all partners if we're going to achieve our goal of universal access to healthcare for every woman and every child. We're grateful for this financial contribution by MSD for Mothers, the first the Global Financing Facility has received from the private sector.”

About the Global Financing Facility

The Global Financing Facility (GFF) is a multi-stakeholder partnership that supports country-led efforts to improve the health of women, children and adolescents. With the GFF, countries are making smarter, more prioritized, results-focused investments toward greater impact on the health, nutrition and well-being of women, children and adolescents; building capacity for more sustainable funding for this agenda; and exploring more innovative ways to work with the private sector by scaling up the best investments in their people more efficiently. Learn more at www.globalfinancingfacility.org and @theGFF.

About MSD for Mothers

MSD for Mothers is a 10-year, $500 million initiative to create a world where no woman dies from complications of pregnancy and childbirth. Drawing on MSD’s history of discovering innovative, life-saving medicines and vaccines, MSD for Mothers is applying the company’s scientific and business expertise – as well as its financial and human resources – to reduce maternal mortality around the world. Learn more at www.msdformothers.com and @MSDforMothers.

About MSD

For over a century, MSD has been a global health care leader working to help the world be well. MSD is a tradename of Merck & Co., Inc., with headquarters in Kenilworth, N.J., U.S.A. Through our prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies and animal health products, we work with customers and operate in more than 140 countries to deliver innovative health solutions. We also demonstrate our commitment to increasing access to health care through far-reaching policies, programs and partnerships. For more information, visit www.msd.com and connect with us on Twitter.

Forward-Looking Statement of Merck & Co. Inc., Kenilworth, N.J., U.S.A.

This news release of Merck & Co., Inc., Kenilworth, N.J., U.S.A. (the “company”) includes “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are based upon the current beliefs and expectations of the company’s management and are subject to significant risks and uncertainties. If underlying assumptions prove inaccurate or risks or uncertainties materialize, actual results may differ materially from those set forth in the forward-looking statements.

Risks and uncertainties include but are not limited to, general industry conditions and competition; general economic factors, including interest rate and currency exchange rate fluctuations; the impact of pharmaceutical industry regulation and health care legislation in the United States and internationally; global trends toward health care cost containment; technological advances, new products and patents attained by competitors; challenges inherent in new product development, including obtaining regulatory approval; the company’s ability to accurately predict future market conditions; manufacturing difficulties or delays; financial instability of international economies and sovereign risk; dependence on the effectiveness of the company’s patents and other protections for innovative products; and the exposure to litigation, including patent litigation, and/or regulatory actions.

The company undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Additional factors that could cause results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements can be found in the company’s 2015 Annual Report on Form 10-K and the company’s other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) available at the SEC’s Internet site (www.sec.gov).