The Vote Drive Save-a-Life Campaign, an initiative to raise funds to help reduce infant mortality in Ghana, has been extended to March 7, 2021, to allow more people to participate.

This is in support of the Project 100 Campaign aimed at purchasing and installing 100 incubators for various health facilities across the country, to save the lives of preterm babies.

The Vote Drive Save-a-Life campaign was also to promote awareness on safeguarding the peace of the country before, during and after the 2020 elections.

Toyota Ghana Limited, in collaboration with Kokrokoo Charities Foundation, announced the extension in Accra on Friday.

Mr Dennis Adutwum, Programme Director for Kokrokoo Charities Foundation, implementers of Project 100, said the extension had been occasioned by the challenges of the recently held elections and the need to allow more people to participate in the final draw.

He said by taking part in the fundraising campaign, participants would contribute towards saving pre-term babies in hospitals across the country and be able to enter into a draw after March 7 to win a brand-new Toyota Starlet give-away from Toyota Ghana.

“Participants are, therefore, required to dial *713*70#, follow the prompts and donate any amount of their choice to Project 100,” Mr Adutwum explained.

He said multiple donations would increase one’s chances of winning the car while contributing, essentially, to raise funds for the purchase of incubators to save the lives of infants born prematurely.

He said since 2014, and through the Project 100 campaign, 35 incubators had been purchased and installed in 22 regional and district hospitals nationwide, while other neo-natal needs of selected hospitals had been provided.

The campaign would, therefore, help Project 100 achieve its goal of providing 65 more incubators for hospitals in Ghana.

The beneficiaries include the Bongo District Hospital, Effia Nkwanta, Ho, and Sunyani Regional hospitals, Tamale, Cape Coast, and Komfo Anokye Teaching hospitals, Agomenya Catholic Hospital, and Tema General Hospital.

According to UNICEF, about 140,000 babies are
born premature in Ghana every year. Of this number, 8,000 die before they are a month old and that one of the measures to help curb the needless deaths is the availability of incubators.

Meanwhile, Toyota Ghana Limited has commended Ghanaians for the relative peaceful elections held on December 7 and urged political parties to remain calm and law-abiding while the courts dealt with residual issues from the elections.