Critics of the Band Aid song 'Do they know it's Christmas?' have said it is insulting to Africa for its 'stereotypical' portrayal of the continent and its suggestion that Africans don't understand Christmas.

In 1984, Dawit Giorgis was the Ethiopian official responsible for spreading the message about the famine engulfing his country. It led to a BBC film showing the plight of starving children and families. It moved millions of people across the world and led to the Live Aid concert which would go on to raise almost £150m for famine relief and development in Ethiopia and elsewhere in Africa.

But Mr Giorgis says that the portrayal was insulting, particularly in its reference to Christmas. He told the BBC:

"It was so untrue and so distorted. Ethiopia was a Christian country before England… we knew Christmas before your ancestors."

The song also describes Africa as a place "where nothing ever grows; no rain nor rivers flow".

Speaking to the BBC, British-Ghanaian rapper Fuse ODG, said :

"The world has changed but Band Aid hasn’t...

"It’s saying there’s no peace and joy in Africa this Christmas. It’s still saying there’s death in every tear...

"I go to Ghana every Christmas… every December so we know there’s peace and joy in Africa this Christmas, we know there isn’t death in every tear."

Bob Geldof who along with Midge Ure wrote the song, defended it's lyrics in an article in The Conversation:

"The same argument has been made many times over the years and elicits the same wearisome response...

"This little pop song has kept hundreds of thousands if not millions of people alive."

 He added that he recognises that Ethiopians celebrate Christmas but says that in 1984 "ceremonies were abandoned".

Last year alone, the Band Aid Charitable Trust distributed more than £3m to various projects including providing clean water, building schools and libraries and providing training to prevent gender-based violence.

Christian charity Mary's Meals UK has been supported by Band Aid since 2010, providing school meals for children in Tigray, Ethiopia, reaching 110,000 last year.

A new version of the single is being released this week under the name Band Aid 40.