The U.K. government will be allocating 1.78 million pounds ($2.9 million) for Save the Children’s international charity work under a new aid-matching scheme that allows the public to determine where part of the aid budget will go.
The amount the Department for International Development will allocate is equivalent to the money raised for Save the Children by the popular U.K. fund-raising TV series “Born to Shine.”
Save the Children is the first recipient of funds under the new scheme, which U.K. international development secretary Andrew Mitchell said is “an excellent example of how the public, the government and the charity sector can work together on the shared goals of improving the lives of some of the poorest and most vulnerable people in the world.”
Born to Shine was inspired by Save the Children’s “No Child Born to Die” campaign, which aims to save 15 million children’s lives by 2015, according to the organization’s chief executive Justin Forsyth. The weekly series featured talented children mentoring celebrities in a new skill.
The program’s last episode aired on Sunday, Aug. 21, but it will still receive donations until Sept. 30. DfID will continue to match donations raised for Save the Children’s overseas work until that date.
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