Merck, a leading science and technology company, announced today that it plans to considerably expand its presence on the African continent over the next five years and is counting on the region's entrepreneurial spirit and innovation power for growth.

Merck is committed to supporting healthy families, healthy communities and healthy economies in Africa, Karl-Ludwig Kley, Chairman of the Executive Board and Chief Executive Officer of Merck, said at a press conference in Johannesburg today.

The company is said to currently have around 400 employees across 10 African countries and aims to increase this number to around 1,000 by 2020.

Merck's largest location is South Africa, from where the company also steers business in South-East Africa including Kenya, Angola and Mozambique.

Merck's sales in Africa will climb to around 200 million in 2015 and are expected to reach 500 million by 2020.

Among other things, Merck announced plans to start local production of the diabetes treatment Glucophage in Algeria, inaugurated an office in Nigeria, and launched the sale of its Muse cell analyser, used to detect HIV.