Madonna in Malawai - new pictures

Madonna has launched the construction of a multi-million dollar girls' school she is building in Malawi. The Raising Malawi Academy for Girls, in Chinkhota village about 15 kilometres outside the capital Lilongwe, is expected to be completed in two years. It will admit 500 girls from the small southern African country's 28 districts. She said: "Growing up in a privileged life, I took education for granted...but coming to Malawi has taught me a lot of things and (I have) learnt to appreciate what life gives" . The singer, who has adopted two children from Malawi, David Banda and Mercy James, said she wanted to give opportunities to underprivileged young girls. "I realised how much they deserve to be educated and so for me the best thing I could do was to build a school, a unique school that will create future female leaders, scientists, lawyers, doctors and if this school is successful it will be used as a model to replicate it in other countries."

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ITN | October 27, 2009

Tags:. .lilongwe. .coming. .replicate. .underprivileged. .privileged