The “Material girl” has some ideas of what women and girls in Kenya need to lead more fulfilling lives.
On a recent visit to the east African country, Madonna met with first lady Margaret Kenyatta about partnering to improve maternal health, girls’ education and fight violence against women, according to reports.
The “Vogue” singer documented her trip on Instagram, which included a trip to Kibera, Africa’s largest slum. She highlighted the area’s polluted water sources, but also showed how nonprofit Shining Hope for Communities is empowering people living there. The group recently built a playground and is helping a widow and mother of 14 children to start her own business, among other projects it's working on.
While meeting with Kenyatta, Madonna vowed to support the country’s Beyond Zero Campaign. The initiative aims to end new HIV infections among children and reduce HIV-related deaths among women and children in Kenya.
It also provides mobile clinics, so people in rural areas can access basic healthcare, and offers safe spaces where victims can report gender-based violence, according to Reuters.
In Kenya, 15 women die every day due to pregnancy related complications and 20 percent of all deaths among mothers in the country are AIDS-related, according to UNAIDS.
Madonna and the first lady discussed collaborating, but did not go into detail with reporters about what such a partnership would look like, according to Reuters.
“Learning about her Beyond Zero Campaign, which targets eliminating maternal and child mortality in Kenya and hoping to join forces to promote Female Empowerment! Around the World!” Madonna posted to Instagram.
Madonna was particularly moved by horrific stories of violence against girls. The star cried after hearing how a man’s 5-year-old daughter was raped by a neighbor in Kibera.
"Her (Madonna's) basic belief is that no child, no woman should be attacked anywhere,” Trevor Neilson, who manages Madonna's Raising Malawi and Ray of Light foundations, told Reuters. “Period.”
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