Madonna's orphan charity

Showbiz

09:30 05 August 2006

Madonna has pledged to raise $3 million to help African orphans.

The singer has launched her own charity 'Raising Malawi' to raise aid and support for villages in the impoverished African country.

She told Time magazine: "Now that I have children, and now that I have what I consider to be a better perspective on life, I have felt responsible for the children of the world.

"I've been doing bits and bobs about it and I suppose I was looking for a big project I could sink my teeth into."

The 'Hung Up' singer will work with anti-poverty crusader Dr. Jeffrey Sachs who is the founder of the Millennium Villages project which has already enlisted the help of U2 singer Bono and Angelina Jolie.

The Millennium Villages project's aim is to make villages self-sufficient through such basic necessities as schools, farming and drinking water.

As part of her 'Raising Malawi' project, Madonna will help to finance a $1 million documentary about the plight of Malawian orphans and work to improve the health, agriculture and economy in the country.

Madonna founded 'Raising Malawi' with Kabbalah Center founder Michael Berg and has already met with former US president Bill Clinton to see if they can bring low-cost medicines to the area.

The project launches next week, with plans for an orphan-care centre that will feed and educate around 1,000 children.

Malawi, a southeast African nation of 12 million people, is plagued by AIDS and malaria and is home to about 1 million orphans.

(C) BANG Media International