TV and radio host Dermot O'Leary has backed a fundraising campaign for people who have been affected by coronavirus and are living in some of the poorest countries in the world.

The much-loved X Factor host said he is urging people to get behind the appeal, which has been launched by the Catholic Agency For Overseas Development (CAFOD) to help those in developing countries hit by the pandemic “get some of the care and support we would want [for] our own families."

O'Leary added: "Millions of people in developing countries face devastation from coronavirus and will be able to do nothing to stop it. They need all the help they can get.

"That is why I am backing CAFOD’s fundraising appeal, so that people already living on the brink get some of the care and support we would want our own families to receive."

The television presenter is a long-time supporter of CAFOD's work, having partnered with them on a visit to Sierra Leone where he met with child soldiers undergoing rehabilitation.

He added: “Some of the children I met when I visited Sierra Leone will be young adults with their own families now. I can only imagine what they are going through. Born into civil war, their country has just survived Ebola and now they are facing the coronavirus pandemic.

“Please give whatever you can and help CAFOD’s local experts deliver food, provide clean water and train community leaders to help save lives.”

CAFOD director, Christine Allen, said: “The potential scale of the coronavirus pandemic across Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East - as well as among refugee and displaced populations in places such as Syria, South Sudan and the Rohingya camps in Bangladesh - is truly frightening.

“Aside from the many deaths that are likely due to infections, millions of people around the world who already struggle to feed their families will face extreme hunger and poverty.

“We are so grateful to Dermot – a life-long supporter of CAFOD – for backing our appeal and giving a voice to the voiceless."