A cleric who oversees the Home of Hope orphanage in Malawi said Wednesday that Madonna had chosen a 13-month-old boy, David Banda, for adoption, with a formal handover expected within days.
David was placed at the orphanage in Mchinji district, roughly 120 kilometres from Lilongwe, after his mother died a week after his birth. His father, Yohane Banda, a 32-year-old subsistence farmer, was unable to support the child. Two older siblings had both died in infancy.
Madonna was in Malawi to review humanitarian projects she has helped fund for children orphaned by AIDS. She was reported to be staying at a Lilongwe lodge with David while the adoption was arranged. An orphanage source said she played with him and carried him on her back, in keeping with local custom.
Under Malawian law, foreign adopters must reside in the country for 18 months under social-worker supervision before an adoption is finalized. A government official had previously indicated the residency requirement could be waived if it served the child's welfare.
The country's director of social welfare said his department had not been officially notified of the adoption.
Historical summary. TurkishPress restated this wire report, first published in October 2006, in its own words.