MADONNA SAY'S ADOPTION "NOT TRUE"

( MADONNA AND FAMILY)

A spokeswoman for Madonna on Wednesday denied claims by officials in the southern African nation of Malawi that the pop star had adopted a one-year-old orphan boy there.

Spokeswoman Liz Rosenberg called the report "completely inaccurate" but said Madonna was not bothered by it because the story would help draw attention to the problems of children in the impoverished country. Rosenberg, said Madonna was visiting orphanages in Malawi this week as part of a charitable program to provide care for an estimated 1 million children who are without parents there, many of them suffering from AIDS. "She has has not adopted a child," Rosenberg news agencies. "She went on a private visit to Malawi ... to participate in the building of an orphanage and several other inititaives that are all under the auspices of an organization called Raising Malawi." Rosenberg said there was no truth to statements from the Malawian government that Madonna had chosen to adopt a year-old boy from among 12 children specially selected prior to her arrival in the capital city of Lilongwe on Wednesday. "She asked us to identify boys only, which we have done after visiting four orphanages in Lilongwe," government spokeswoman Adrina Michiela said, adding that Madonna had wanted to adopt a girl but changed her mind two weeks ago. "None of that is accurate," said Rosenberg, who acts as Madonna 's chief spokeswoman at her Warner Records music label.