LILONGWE, Malawi — Madonna laid the first brick on Tuesday for her new $15 million Raising Malawi Academy for Girls, a project she says "will rebuild this community and raise this nation."
Scheduled to open in 2011, the academy "will educate, protect, and empower 450 young girls who are Malawi's hope for the future."
"Having seen the determination in the eyes of these children, I know they have the strength to save Malawi—they just need to be given the tools," said Madonna in a blog post on the Raising Malwai Web site.
The "Material Girl," who rose to fame in the '80s, said she was drawn to help the impoverished southern African country after enduring her own difficult childhood.
"On my first visit to Malawi, I was devastated to meet child after child who had been orphaned by AIDS. Having lost my mother at such a young age, I felt a close connection to these children. Their stories had touched my own," she explained. "In a country of 14 million, a staggering one million children have been left alone with the responsibility of raising each other. I returned home knowing the future of Malawi was resting on the shoulders of these orphaned children, and I had to act."
At the same event, Madonna also launched a telecommunications and fundraising initiative that aims to provide education to children around the world by offering secondary school scholarships and by supporting schools in developing countries in accessing the Internet.
"It's time for a change," the 51-year-old pop star said of "Connect to Learn," an initiative led by Earth Institute, Ericsson and Millennium Promise. "There are millions of kids around the world not in school so we're inviting everyone to join us in hooking kids up with access to a basic education through scholarships, and the opportunities that come with access to technology and the world's information."
Madonna first traveled to Malawi during a charity mission in which she filmed a documentary on the poverty and AIDS crisis there. She has since adopted two children from the country, son David Banda, 5, and daughter Mercy James, 3.
The singer also has an 9-year-old son, Rocco, with ex-husband Guy Ritchie, and a 13-year-old daughter, Lourdes, from her relationship with fitness trainer Carlos Leon.
All four of Madonna's children accompanied her on the latest trip to Malawi.
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