Sunday Times (Johannesburg) - October 22, 2006
Rowan Philp

IT USED to refer to the most bankable movie stars in Hollywood, but nowadays the term "A-list" stands for something else entirely - the Africa List.

With Madonna becoming the latest celebrity to adopt an African baby - and, de facto, a country in the shape of Malawi - the celebrity scramble for Africa appears to be well and truly under way.

While the Material Girl appears to have Malawi all sewn up, George Clooney, Mia Farrow and Don Cheadle have dibs on Darfur and Britain's Prince Harry reigns in Lesotho.

Not to be outdone, Matt Damon and Oprah Winfrey are lecturing on African education. Gwyneth Paltrow, her former fianc Brad Pitt and his latest lover Angelina Jolie are adopting Africa's children, while rock stars Bono and Bob Geldof and film stars Ralph Fiennes and Joanna Lumley are laying the groundwork for African farmers.

But by far the biggest A-lister is Jolie, a Goodwill Ambassador for the UN's High Commissioner on Refugees, who has adopted two children from developing countries.

The Tomb Raider actress, who this year addressed the influential World Economic Forum in Davos, is said to have inspired not only mother-of-two Madonna but also other celebrities' interest in Africa by making it sexy.

Not far behind Jolie are long-time Africa campaigners Bono and Geldof, who routinely meet heads of state and address global gatherings on Africa, debt relief and Aids.

While there is no doubt Africa is the cause c l bre of the moment, there is some confusion over where and how it started.

Some believe the late Princess Diana put Africa on the celebrity map when she began championing the cause of defusing land mines in Africa 10 years ago.

Another question without an answer is what impact these celebrities have had on helping the continent.

Economists and experts appear to agree that, donations aside, their impact remains impossible to quantify.

And aid activists remain divided over their contribution.

While some write off the stars' efforts as publicity stunts, others argue that they give cachet to unpopular and little-known issues.

Well-intentioned though they may be, critics argue that the new A-listers scare off investors and tourists by recasting Africa as a basket case whose children have no future without charity.

They are also concerned that Africa will find itself facing the same headache that Hollywood has - that the superstars are guaranteed to score, even if the production bombs.

Demba Moussa Dembele, a Senegalese economist and spokesman for the Forum for African Alternatives, said visiting Hollywood stars had created the false impression that the problems of Africa were being neatly addressed with charity, and has commented: "[African] people must not be fooled by these celebrities."

There is also concern about exactly how informed they are.

Showbiz insiders in London told the Sunday Times that stars appeared to rely on their mega-star friendship circle, rather than UN agencies and global anti-poverty campaigns, for information on which African causes to help.

They said Madonna, Pitt, Damon and Paltrow - who has even declared "I am African" - all had Jolie to thank for their decisions.

South African development activist Kumi Naidoo - former chairman of the Global Call to Action Against Poverty - agreed that celebrities could be sadly misinformed.

He related the tale of Geldof's unreserved praise for last year's resolutions on Africa at the Gleneagles G8 Summit - even though many questioned what it really meant.

"Geldof even called me a disgrace for saying: 'The people have roared, but the G8 whispered'," said Naidoo.

Rachel Weingarten, a New York-based publicist, complained to CNN last year about "the Hollywoodisation of doing good".

"I have real issues," she said, "with the fact that people with great ideas, who do good things - if they don't have a name attached, they get lost."

She also warned that the celebrity factor sometimes overwhelmed the cause. One charity event she worked on, which was intended to benefit several hundred children, only ended up supporting a fraction of the number because of the money forked out to meet the demands of its celebrity sponsors, CNN heard.

But for every critic of celebrity causes there is a fan.

Even Naidoo conceded that "they do bring crucial attention to problems".

"George Clooney is a good example," he says. "When I spoke to him last year, he said: 'I really want to help. I'm here to learn.' Many of us lobbied him about Darfur, and look what he is doing for public awareness of that issue now."

Ian Goldin, director of the James Martin 21st Century School at Oxford University, said: "I think Bono has done a fantastic job for Africa - and so has Bob Geldof.

"I know there is cynicism about the motives of these stars we see getting involved. But, as an African, I simply don't mind if they raise their record sales if, at the same time, they are raising issues of poverty and health in Africa in the public eye. In my opinion, most have had a positive impact."

Ben Hewitt, head of communications for the Save the Children charity, warned that while "crucial" African voices often lost out to remarks made by superstars "and there is only a certain amount of space for commentary on these issues", celebrities had proved invaluable in highlighting problems the media had become bored with.

"When there is an earthquake or some other sudden natural disaster, agencies can cope on their own - but we have struggled to raise the profile of on-going issues, like Darfur.

"High- profile people can make all the difference in putting them back on the agenda."

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