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| Stefan Oschmann, CEO-elect of Merck, gives Praziquantel to a pupil at a school in Nigeria |
When Merck unveiled its Africa 2020 strategy in November, there was no shortage of ambition.
The company announced plans to expand across the continent into new territories while upping its workforce to 1,000 from 400 with the intention of more than doubling sales from €200 million to €500 million.
At the same time, the company also opened new offices in Lagos, Nigeria, and commissioned a new manufacturing plant for diabetes medications in Algeria which will create 500 million tablets a year and enable the country to reduce its import spend.
At the forefront of this strategy is Fritz Sacher, Merck’s head of Africa strategy realization- a role he has held since January 2015. Prior to this, Sacher was
