Snappy newsletters. Simple Facebook sharing. Spirited comments. Sweet features are waiting… GET THEM NOW!

Plans for Madonna's Malawi School Collapse

Her charitable foundation pulls plug amid financial mess

By John Johnson, Newser Staff

Posted Mar 24, 2011 8:36 PM CDT

(Newser) – A plan spearheaded by Madonna to build a $15 million school for impoverished girls in Malawi has been officially scrapped amid charges that the people running the project on her behalf squandered millions, reports the New York Times. In addition, the foundation Madonna founded with other Kabbalah devotees, Raising Malawi, has ousted its board of directors over the mess. The singer is among those stepping in to form a caretaker board.

Madonna issued a statement saying she still intended to focus on the "education crisis" in Malawi—she's adopted two children from there—but didn't shed light on the apparent lack of oversight at her foundation. The girls' school never got built, but those running the project managed to spend nearly $4 million on salaries, designs, and employee cars.

Madonna plants a tree at a ground-breaking ceremony for her Raising Malawi Academy for Girls in Malawi, Monday, Oct. 26, 2009. (AP Photo/Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi)

In this 2009 file photo, Madonna with adopted son David Banda visits the Mphandula Day Care Centre for orphans near Lilongwe, Malawi. (AP Photo/Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi, file)

A file photo of Madonna in Malawi in 2009. (AP Photo/Riccardo Gangale, file)

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

CLICK BELOW TO VOTE

19%

47%

10%

16%

To report an error on this story, notify our editors.

OTHER STORIES ON OUR RADAR

AP Photo

Chef Serves Up … His Own Genitals? (Huff Post)

My Boss Walked in on Me Touching Myself, Now He Won't Stop Flirting (Slate)

This Celebrity May Be the Worst Metrosexual Ever (Bleacher Report)

Has Aston Kutcher Been Sneaking Around with Demi Moore's Daughter? (The Stir)

Which Celebrity Was Attacked By a Former Girlfriend? (NewsOne)

Partner Links

Sponsor Links

A snapshot of the day's best news stories.

View Larger Grid

All Today Yesterday Pick a Date

COMMENTS

Read the comment policy

Showing 3 of 4 comments

Ripp

Mar 26, 2011 9:57 AM CDT

Africa is shot. No one will be able to fix it. Look at South Afrika, A once beautiful country, now a pig sty. Apartheid my ass!

wyle

Mar 24, 2011 10:33 PM CDT

Did she really believe the money left in this impoverished country would be spent wisely? At least Its good to know they all bought nice cars.

schmidtkoff

Mar 24, 2011 8:51 PM CDT

why doesn't madonna et al put their millions into shoring up america's impoverished children and their failing or non existing schools? what is it with these people? same as the shining fab stars adopting children from these impoverished areas? like we don't have impoverished children here. abused and abandoned children here?

What's Popular Now on Facebook

Rape Conviction Cleared, Thanks to Facebook

80-Year-Old Skydiver Slips Out of Harness

New York Times (Source Grid »)

World • Celebrity • Entertainment

philanthropy • Malawi • campaign fundraising • Madonna • Kabbalah • Madonna Malawi

More Newser Stories

What's Really Going On With Madonna's Charities?

Another nonprofit investigated as the Daily Beast takes a closer look

(NEWSER) - Not a good couple of weeks for Madonna: After a scandal late last month involving her Raising Malawi charity, another one of the Material Girl's nonprofits is under fire. The FBI is looking into "irregularities and suspicious activity" involving Success for Kids, an educational charity, the Daily reports. The organization has raised $33 million in contributions since 2001, and claims to have helped 60,000 kids in seven countries. Raising Malawi split from Success for Kids in 2008. More»

Madonna's $15M School Ousts 200 Malawi Villagers

Residents must relocate, but singer did compensate them

(NEWSER) - Madonna wants to help Malawi with her $15 million girls’ school so much that she’s ejecting villagers to make it happen. Residents didn’t want to leave the school site just outside the capital, but the government handed the land over to Madonna and told 200 Malawians they must move to another government site. Madonna did, at least, pay the villagers about $115,000 for their houses, the future principal of her school tells the AP . More»

Kabbalah Centre at Heart of Tax Probe

Ex-CFO aims to 'bring down' operation

(NEWSER) - The Kabbalah Centre in Los Angeles is taking center stage as details emerge on a federal probe involving two of Madonna’s charities . The IRS is investigating whether the family in charge of the organization used its nonprofit dollars for personal gain, sources tell the Los Angeles Times . The Berg family, the Centre, and the singer’s Raising Malawi charity all face a grand jury probe. More»

Meet Trevor Neilson, Brangelina Puppetmaster

Ian Halperin tome reveals the man behind the brand

(NEWSER) - Insiders are split on the sincerity of Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt’s global philanthropy spree, but everyone knows exactly who crafted their do-gooder image: Trevor Neilson. The “Hollywood philanthropy adviser” extraordinaire "practically created Brangelina,” an insider tells Ian Halperin for his book Brangelina. “It's practically synonymous with goodness in the public's mind.” PopEater obtained an excerpt. More»

Madonna Starts Malawian Girls School

Star breaks ground on $15M project in children's homeland

(NEWSER) - Construction on a Malawian school for girls founded by Madonna began today. The singer has put up $15 million for the creation of the Raising Malawi Academy for Girls, which is expected to be finished in 2 years, the BBC reports. "Growing up in a privileged life, I took education for granted, but coming to Malawi has taught me a lot of things, and to learn to appreciate what life gives," Madonna said at today's ribbon-cutting ceremony. More»

NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS

What is Newser?

Face it: there's too much news. At Newser, we choose the most thought-provoking and entertaining stories from hundreds of US and international sources and reduce them to a headline, picture, and two paragraphs. And we do it 24/7—you can come back morning, noon, night (and in between) for something new that matters. Read less, know more.

Learn more »

Partnering with: Slate

View Newser on the mobile website

Plans for Madonna's Malawi School Collapse

Her charitable foundation pulls plug amid financial mess

OTHER STORIES ON OUR RADAR

philanthropy • Malawi • campaign fundraising • Madonna • Kabbalah • Madonna Malawi

MOST POPULAR STORIES

[ By Views ]

[ By Comments ]

More Newser Stories

What's Really Going On With Madonna's Charities?

Another nonprofit investigated as the Daily Beast takes a closer look

Madonna's $15M School Ousts 200 Malawi Villagers

Residents must relocate, but singer did compensate them

Kabbalah Centre at Heart of Tax Probe

Ex-CFO aims to 'bring down' operation

Meet Trevor Neilson, Brangelina Puppetmaster

Ian Halperin tome reveals the man behind the brand

Madonna Starts Malawian Girls School

Star breaks ground on $15M project in children's homeland

About Us

Site

Community

Site Maps

Tools

More News

What is Newser?