In Burkina Faso, a Personal Mission To Make a Difference in One Community

NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / December 2, 2022 / Merck & Co., Inc.

Foto: Accesswire

Challenging life experiences united two Merck colleagues - Jules Millogo and Cathy Hoath - on a mission to create opportunities and break the cycle of poverty in the small village of Konkourona, in the West African country of Burkina Faso.

Homelessness, hunger and illness in Konkourona

Konkourona is where Millogo, director, medical affairs, global vaccines, grew up with extremely limited access to health care, education, clean water and the bare necessities. It's also where he witnessed six of his siblings pass away from preventable diseases. Millogo's father was a strong believer in education and sent him to attend the nearest school in another village, which was hours away from Konkourona on foot.

Despite experiencing much communal trauma growing up, Millogo graduated from medical school and began his career in a Burkina Faso province far from Konkourona, serving as the only doctor for a population of 250,000.

"I somehow managed to overcome bouts of homelessness, hunger and illness from infectious diseases that often come with extreme poverty," said Millogo. "I grew up knowing that I needed to make a difference in Konkourona and bring opportunities and hope to the people living there."

Forming Konkourona Alliance Foundation (KAFO) to fight for opportunity and equity

When Millogo joined Merck, he met Cathy Hoath, senior director of regulatory affairs international, vaccines. Hoath was born in Booth Memorial Hospital for Unwed Mothers in Philadelphia, after her teenage birth mother was thrown out of her parents' home and was unable to find a job or apartment. That experience fuels Hoath's drive to fight for equity and opportunities - for women, children and all who want to create better lives for themselves and their communities in the U.S. and around the world.

In 2019, during a meeting with the World Health Organization to register our company's Ebola Zaire vaccine in the countries at highest risk in Africa, Millogo and Hoath began discussing ways they could support development in Konkourona. A few months later, they co-founded the non-profit organization Konkourona​ Alliance Foundation (KAFO), Inc.

"It was the perfect convergence of my professional and personal worlds, giving me the chance to fight for greater opportunity and equity for some of the world's most vulnerable people."