Be a life saver this Christmas for just £15 by purchasing a simple baby birthing kit, just one of 42 gifts available from the Autumn/Winter 07 Present Aid virtual gift catalogue from Christian Aid.

Newborn deaths in developing countries such as Burkina Faso are nine times higher than those in the UK. This kit, which contains sterilized razor blades, gloves, soap and bandages, could help volunteer midwives trained by Christian Aid partner organisations to prevent infection and the death of thousands of children.

The Present Aid Christmas gift list (www.presentaid.org) features 42 inspiring and fun gift ideas, ranging in price from £8 for a basketball for a kids sports project working on peace and reconciliation in Burundi to £3,140 to fund a health worker's annual salary in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. Perfect for friends and relatives, and difficult-to-buy-for people, there is something to suit everyone's budget and gifts can be ordered from the comfort of your own home. Loved ones will receive a card detailing their gift and a unique Present Aid mobile ring tone to download.

Why not be inspired by the recipients and choose a gift to suit their personality? New gift ideas for Autumn/Winter 07 include a barber's kit for vocational training in Jamaica - perfect for your bearded friends, a greenhouse or watering can for farmers in Bolivia and Mali - ideal for those with green fingers or a sewing machine for a livelihoods project in Egypt - great for a friend who is a bit crafty!

All money raised by Present Aid gifts is allocated to a relevant project fund. For example £24 for 16 ducks will go into the agriculture and livestock fund, £10 for a disaster survival kit will contribute to emergency and disaster preparedness projects and £45 for a community water tap will be put into in the water and environment pot.

Gifts for Christmas can be purchased at any time online and via the catalogue ­- remember to get your orders in by 15 December to be in time for Christmas Day. The printed catalogue will be available from the beginning of September 2007 and all new online gifts will be available from 3 October. Orders can also be placed, and catalogues ordered, 24-hours a day by calling 0845 3300 500 .

Lisa Butcher, model and TV presenter:-

"Clothes are obviously very important to me. But Present Aid's scheme to provide vulnerable children in the world's poorest countries with school uniforms, so that they can get an education and achieve their ambitions, goes beyond important. Just £13 will help pay for shoes, uniforms and school fees. An education has to be the most fashionable gift you can give this Christmas."

Actress Jill Halfpenny:-

"I normally give far too many presents at Christmas, and get a fair few myself.

"So I'd really like something that can help others, like the disaster survival kit, which is only a tenner from Present Aid. These include essential items like food, matches and oil. Last year, I saw for myself how a natural disaster can leave people with nothing, when I travelled to south India to see the aftermath of the tsunami."

Suranne Jones, star of Coronation Street and Vincent:-

"When I went to Sierra Leone with Christian Aid, I was amazed by just how positive the children were and how keen they were to learn and have fun. But malaria not only prevents kids from going to school or playing but is responsible for a large proportion of childhood deaths in Africa. A simple mosquito net which only costs £11, can be the difference between life and death. So it sounds like a great idea for a Christmas present to me."

Singer Lemar:-

"So many kids use sport and music to escape difficult situations. In some African countries, like Burundi, where there has been long-term conflict, warring factions come together to play football or basketball to ease tension. The basketball which costs eight pounds from Present Aid is definitely a gift I would send, knowing it is helping kids in a war-torn country to come together and do something positive instead of fight."

Singer Ronan Keating:-

"I was lucky enough to go to Ghana with Christian Aid and see small-scale farmers do some really productive work. So a resettlement pack from Present Aid at £20, which gets farmers up and running (containing maize, beans, pans and a hoe) sounds like a great Christmas present."

Actor Damian Lewis:-

"We all think of water as a basic human right. I saw for myself when I travelled to Bolivia that some families have to dig water out the ground which is filthy. So the idea of community tap, on Christian Aid's Present Aid initiative, would make a brilliant Christmas present. £45 to provide the pump, pipes and tap stand to bring fresh water to a village must be money well spent."

Garden designer and TV presenter Diarmuid Gavin:-

"In Kenya, I saw how farmers are being exceptionally creative, with Christian Aid's help, in preventing natural disasters by planting trees in the right places. 2,000 saplings from Present Aid cost £35, and could mean storms don't wash away people's homes and livelihoods. That's a fantastic idea for a Christmas present."

Actor Kris Marshall:-

"Going to the rainforests of Bolivia with Christian Aid was an unforgettable experience. The best part was meeting farmer Malaquia Rosel and his family in Beni. They had been given a ewe and a ram, which costs £63 from Present Aid, and with them, they were able to breed 250 woolless sheep which will feed the village and enable him to send his kids to school. So, as a Christmas gift, it's pretty good value..."

ENDS

Notes to Editors:

Christian Aid works in some of the world's poorest communities in more than 50 countries. We act where the need is greatest, regardless of religion, helping people build the life they deserve. Money raised by the gifts in the Present Aid catalogue are distributed to one of six project funds : · Agriculture and livestock

· Emergency and disaster preparedness

· Healthcare including HIV/AIDS

· Power and energy

· Training and education

· Water and environment

Newborn refers to neonatal mortality rates (death within the first 29 days of birth) - source UNICEF