British public to have their say on how UK aid is spent as government supports largest ever round of charity appeals

28 Aug 2017 12:07 AM

UK Aid Match brings charities, the public and UK government together to collectively change the lives of some of the world’s poorest people.

Britons can have an even greater say on how UK aid is spent helping the world’s poorest, International Development Secretary Priti Patel announced yesterday, as she launched the largest ever round of UK aid-supported charity appeals to back the causes which matter to the British public.

With old pound coins going out of circulation in mid-October, the UK public are invited to get rid of their old change by donating to a variety of charity appeals, which will be match-funded by UK aid, doubling the amount their favourite causes receive.

UK Aid Match brings charities, the British public and the UK government together to collectively change the lives of some of the world’s poorest and most vulnerable people.

This year, more than 20 charities from across Britain have been selected to run UK Aid Match appeals and implement high-quality projects in developing countries. For every £1 donated to a charity appeal, the government will also contribute £1 of UK aid to help these projects go further in changing and saving lives.

The extra funding raised by the appeals will boost support to millions of the world’s poorest through work which includes clearing landmines, ensuring people have enough food and water to survive, and protecting women and girls from the risk of violence.

International Development Secretary Priti Patel said:

The overwhelming generosity of the UK public in times of crisis is one of the things that makes Britain truly great. By matching pound for pound donations to charities of all sizes from across the country, we can champion a wide range of causes close to people’s hearts.

Old pound coins are due to got out of circulation in October so by getting rid of old change, the public can help to double the amount great causes receive, ensuring their support goes even further.

Look out for the UK Aid Match logo – which features the Union flag – on charity appeals from now until Spring next year. It shows that the UK government will match your donations, providing a boost to some of the very best projects and make a real and lasting difference to those in need. And for millions in the world’s poorest countries, it’s a badge of hope that help is on its way from the British people.

The first appeal to launch in this round of UK Aid Match is Action Against Hunger’s #HealthyMumsHealthyKids appeal, which runs from 2 September until 2 December 2017. Diners at more than 400 venues including Hawksmoor and Pho can make a voluntary donation when they pay their bill.

The appeal will support mums-to-be and children in Senegal where one in five children are stunted and 30% of all child deaths are due to malnutrition. Support for this programme will ensure adolescents, pregnant women and children get the right food they need to avoid a lifetime of damaging effects from poor nutrition.

Action Against Hunger has previously received UK Aid Match support which helped people in Niger, Burkina Faso and Liberia address malnutrition by providing agricultural tools and seeds enabling them to grown their own food in their backyard gardens.

Other appeals due to launch in September include World Child Cancer, Concern Worldwide, Hope and Homes for Children, Mine Advisory Group (MAG), Hope for Children and Build Africa, who are based in regions across the UK including Belfast, Wiltshire and Manchester.

UK Aid Match is designed to provide opportunities for the UK public to engage with international development issues and have a say in how UK aid is spent, whilst boosting the impact of the very best civil society projects to reach the poorest people in developing countries.

Notes to Editors

• This is the biggest round of UK aid match appeals ever with approx. 25 appeals across the whole UK and potentially £30m of funding available to be matched to appeals from September to end of March next year.

• UK Aid Match appeals will be highlighted on www.gov.uk/uk-aid-match and on DFID’s social media channels as they are launched. UK Aid Match is funded from the international development budget, up to a total of £5 million per appeal.
• The first phase of UK Aid Match, launched between 2013 and 2016, funded 59 appeals. An estimated 3.6m people in the UK donated to match-funded appeals. A total of £120m went to 42 charities, operating in 22 countries and running projects including health, education and water, sanitation and hygiene which are expected to benefit 19 million people.
• Quotes from charities involved in UK Aid Match are available on request.
• The key requirements for the match funding scheme are that the organisation running the appeal is a UK-based non-governmental and not-for-profit organisation and that the appeal is set to raise at least £100,000, within a 3 month appeal period. Donations must be from people (not businesses) living in the UK and go towards an eligible international development project.
• For further information and guidance, please visit www.gov.uk/uk-aid-match.

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