Madonna's orphan song

Music

13:30 06 October 2006

Madonna was greeted by a crowd of singing Malawi orphans when she visited their orphanage yesterday (05.10.06).

The singer and husband Guy Ritchie were serenaded by a group of 28 children on their arrival to the village of Kondanani.

Orphanage director Anne Chikhwaza said: "She and her husband are very lovely. She has a kind heart and she really wants to help."

The orphanage is home to 128 children, many of whom have lost one or both parents to AIDS.

Madonna, 48, is in the impoverished African country to promote her project Raising Malawi, which aims to set up an orphan care centre to provide food, education and shelter for up to 4,000 children.

Maddona, who is filming a documentary about her mission, has pledged to spend £1.6 million on the project.

The 'Hung Up' singer - who has a nine-year-old daughter, Lourdes, from her relationship with fitness instructor Carlos Leon, and son Rocco, five, with Ritchie - was rumoured to be adopting a one-year-old Malawi orphan boy herself.

However, her spokeswoman, Liz Rosenberg, has denied the reports.

Rosenberg said: "I have no information or confirmation regarding Madonna adopting an individual child. She's kind of adopting an entire country of children."

(C) BANG Media International