THE Feed Our Future campaign launched last year by the Scottish charity Mary’s Meals, which provides school meals for children around the world, has raised millions more than expected.

The appeal, which was supported by The Herald and Times and Stagecoach, asked people to donate at least £12.20, which is what it costs the charity to feed a child for a year - with the initial aim of raising £1.5 million in total.

However, the response across the UK was much greater than expected and between October and December last year, £5m was raised, which will now be matched by the UK Government, making a total of £10m. At the start of the campaign, the Government had promised to match every donation pound for pound under its UK Aid Match scheme.

Mary’s Meals, which recently reached the milestone of feeding one million children every school day, will now spend the money on expanding its feeding programmes in Malawi and Zambia. The charity was founded in 1992 with the aim of using the promise of daily meal to attract children to school, where they can gain the knowledge and skills to escape poverty.

The founder of the charity, Magnus MacFarlane-Barrow, said he was delighted at the amount raised by Feed Our Future, but said there was still a lot of work to do.

“We are so thankful to our quite amazing supporters, and to the UK Government for matching those generous donations,” he said. “While we are delighted that this funding boost will allow us to reach children in these particular districts in Malawi and Zambia, we remain painfully aware that many more are still hungry and out of school, not just in Africa, but all over the world.

“In fact, globally, 59 million children are missing out on their education because of poverty. So, more than ever, we remain focused on raising the next £12.20 – which is what it costs on average for us to feed a child for an entire school year – and we look forward to the day when every child in this world of plenty can receive a daily meal in their place of education.”

The UK Government’s International Development Secretary Justine Greening will visit the Mary’s Meals office in Glasgow today to officially announce the Aid Match funding and meet some of the schoolchildren who helped raise money for the appeal.

Ms Greening said: “Mary’s Meals is an inspirational charity, helping to transform the lives of some of the world’s poorest children. Its work shows the importance of Scotland’s role in the UK’s international development effort. Working together we are helping to build a safer, healthier, more prosperous world.”