“In the field, we are fortunate to be able to rely on a network of exceptional women and men who work tirelessly to be able to provide a better future for their people. We owe it to ourselves to remain at their side: their courage and determination command respect and give meaning to our commitment.”
As part of our commitment to ensuring fair access to healthcare, we work to guarantee universal care for patients, with no discrimination on the basis of origin, beliefs, or disability, and with a particular focus on women and children, identified as priority beneficiaries due to their greater vulnerability.
Building on the experience gained with the mother and child center in Duris, the Mérieux Foundation began building a primary health center in Baalbek, in the north of the Bekaa plain, in 2023, on land provided by the Lebanese Armed Forces. Continuing the Foundation’s activities in the region, the project aims to improve access to health services for armed forces personnel, their families, and the most vulnerable local civilian populations. The Mérieux Foundation is contributing its expertise in designing, building, and equipping the facility, which will be part of the Ministry of Public Health’s network of Primary Health Centers.
The first phase of the work (construction of the first floor) was completed in 2025, and the decision to build a second floor has been approved by all the project partners: the Lebanese Army, the Ministry of Public Health and the Governorate of Baalbek-Hermel.
In early 2023, the Mérieux Foundation launched a pilot project in Thiadiaye, in western Senegal, to create a maternal, neonatal, and infant health service based on an inclusive, holistic approach. Housed within the existing health center, this service will offer treatment pathways covering the health and well-being of mothers and children, with clinical, psychological, social, and nutritional care and parental support. The project includes a focus on strengthening the capacity of the medical biology laboratory attached to the health center.
Creation of a mother and child health unit in Thiadiaye for primary health care
Work began in 2025 and progress has been made in several aspects of the preparations: staff recruitment, supply of equipment, approval of a treatment protocol, etc. The Foundation is providing its expertise through assistance to the contracting authority for the design, execution, and monitoring of the work, in partnership with our team based in Dakar. A program to support the medical biology laboratory has also begun (quality management and staff coaching).
Funded jointly with the Department of International Cooperation of the Principality of Monaco and the AnBer Foundation, the project was put together in collaboration with several departments in Senegal’s Ministry of Health and Public Hygiene, the Thiès Regional Health Department, the Health District, local associations, and “neighborhood godmothers” (community matriarchs who mediate between residents and the health and social services).
Supporting the network of community health centers
The model for the Foundation’s integrated health approach was underlined in Lebanon with the signature of a new partnership agreement with the Lebanese authorities on April 25, 2025, to support the Rachaya primary health center. This project includes the renovation and expansion of the center’s infrastructure, the improvement of care services (maternal and child health, mental health, and early detection of breast cancer), and the creation of specialized services such as speech therapy. The first stage was completed in September 2025 with the opening of the extension to the center.
Partnership signing for a primary health center
This agreement forms part of the Lebanese “Vision 2030” health strategy and extends the Foundation’s commitment, which began with the construction of the Duris mother and child center in 2021. This support entered a new phase in 2024 with the aim of perpetuating the achievements of the Duris center while replicating some of its activities at other facilities in the Bekaa plain, including the Rachaya health center. Medical and paramedical activities continued in 2025 despite the continuingly unstable security situation. Mental health screening and referral protocols were deployed across all three centers identified by the project.
Under the supervision of the Ministry of Public Health, these activities are being coordinated by the Mérieux Foundation with the support of the Department of International Cooperation of the Principality of Monaco. They also receive operational backing from the NGO Amel International, the Governorate of Baalbek El Hermel and the Duris Municipality.
Mental health training
On November 4, 13, and 20, 2025, the Mérieux Foundation ran a training course on the clinical evaluation of priority mental disorders. Thirteen professionals from the Zahlé and Rachaya centers took part in the training, based on the WHO “Mental Health Gap Action Programme” (mhGAP), which aims to fill the mental health gaps in primary care facilities, particularly in low-income countries.
