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January 19, 2017 1:30 am ET

Represents a Critical Step toward Meeting the Sustainable Development Goals for Women, Children and Adolescent Health

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).

Media:
MSD for Mothers
Lainie Keller, 908-236-5036
or
Global Financing Facility
Cheryl Toksoz, 202-473-1103
or
Investors:
MSD
Teri Loxam, 908-740-1986
or
Amy Klug, 908-740-1898