Malawi ‘fed up’ with Madonna

The singer was accused of not consulting over her plans to build 10 new schools.

LILONGWE:

Malawi’s government on Tuesday accused Madonna of not consulting over her plans to build 10 new schools in the southern African state and said the singer seemed more interested in promoting her global image than helping with education there.

But the head of an organisation that pop star Madonna brought in to help with her efforts in Malawi fired back, saying the government accusation was “simply not true” and that it had been “fully updated” on the singer’s plans.

Madonna, who has adopted two children from Malawi, announced in January her Raising Malawi charity was teaming up with the non-profit group buildOn to construct the schools, which would educate at least 1,000 children a year.

Malawi’s Ministry of Education spokeswoman Lindiwe Chide told Reuters the government was “fed up” with Madonna. Chide said that when the singer scrapped a previously planned academy for girls in Malawi last year, alleging mismanagement and cost overruns, she did not inform Malawian authorities. “Now she decides to announce that she plans to build 10 schools without getting authority from us again,” Chide said. “We now feel like this is all about propping up her global image and not in our interest,” she added.

Trevor Neilson, who heads up Global Philanthropy Group, said in a statement released by the pop star’s New York-based spokeswoman: “This is simply not true. The government of Malawi has been fully updated on Madonna’s effort to provide funding for 10 schools to be built in communities where there are no schools.”

Madonna’s earlier plan to build a state-of-the-art girls school for about 400 girls just outside the Malawi capital Lilongwe collapsed last year, and the board of her Raising Malawi charity was fired. The New York Times said at the time that $3.8 million had been spent on the school with little to show for it. The singer has lent $11 million to the organisation which she co-founded in 2006.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 15^th, 2012.