Pop diva Madonna, who was sent packing from Malawi in April last year after a dispute with former president Joyce Banda, has returned to the country after her VVIP status was restored by President Peter Mutharika.
The pop star landed in Lilongwe on Wednesday, accompanied by David Banda and Mercy Chifundo, two Malawian children she adopted, and her 14-year-old son, Rocco, along with an entourage that included advisers and bodyguards.
She later posted pictures taken during a visit to a Missionaries of Charity orphanage nearby, and sparked speculation among her social media followers about another adoption.
In one photograph, Madonna is playing ball with a group of children. In two others, the same doe-eyed girl named Maria features - in one staring straight at the camera, in the other wearing the pop star's oversized designer sunglasses.
"Who's that Girl?" the singer captioned one picture, prompting a poster to write: "She is cute! Are u going to adopt again?"
Madonna was due to meet Mutharika, who took over from Banda at the last elections.
"She is expected to announce her partnering with the ministry of health to fund construction of a paediatric unit and a children's theatre at Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital in Blantyre," government spokesman Frederick Ndala said.
Madonna and Banda had a series of public disagreements after the pop star sacked her sister, Anjimile Mtila-Oponyo, as head of her Raising Malawi charity.
Madonna tried to meet Banda during a visit to Malawi last year, but the president said the star was simply trying to get "poor people to dance for her" and refused, also accusing her of "blackmail" and "bullying".
An airport official said Madonna and her entourage were whisked into a fleet of SUVs and driven through town to Kumbali Lodge, a farm lodge where she always stays on her visits to Malawi.
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