City AM and the Financial Times will see their Christmas appeals matched pound-for-pound by the Department for International Development as part of the UK Aid Match fund.

The announcement follows the news that Save the Children's No child Born to Die campaign, the first to be backed by the scheme, received over £500,000 from DfID. The Department matched funds raised in the final televised fundraising appeal of celebrity talent show Born to Shine, which was aired on ITV throughout the summer.

City AM's first ever Christmas appeal will support Opportunity International UK, a charity specialising is microfinance for developing countries. The FT seasonal appeal will raise money for Sightsavers.

Some £30m is available to charities through the UK Aid Match fund sheme for non-emergency public appeals for international causes. The scheme was devised by DfID to give the public a greater say in where UK aid money is spent. Every appeal selected by DfID will have its public appeal funds matched up to the value of £5m. 

International Development Secretary Andrew Mitchell said: "The British public has repeatedly shown its generosity during tough economic times, supporting charities' life-altering work in some of the world’s poorest countries. We are responding to that generosity of spirit by matching public support for these appeals pound for pound.

"We will help Opportunity International double the impact of its work to create jobs and income and provide twice as many people with the financial services so often out of reach for those in the developing world.

"Our support could help Sightsavers provide tens of thousands more trachoma operations and hundreds of thousands more eye examinations, giving children a better chance of completing their education, of finding a job, and ultimately of achieving a brighter future."