British actor and filmmaker Idris Elba, who has himself tested positive for Covid-19, has helped kick off an appeal for a UN relief fund to help rural communities stricken by the coronavirus pandemic.

With $40 million in UN seed money, a special fund to help small-scale farmers is seeking another $200m in donations so the coronavirus lockdown doesn't spark a hunger crisis.

The fund “needs more assistance to carry on the work that is desperately needed to keep food systems operating in rural areas if we are to come out of this crisis together and avoid needless hunger and suffering”, said Elba in a statement.