Madonna holds David Banda in her arms, in this April 19, 2007, file photo at Consol Homes, a day care center that she is funding in the village of Masekese, Malawi. [Agencies]

Madonna is planning to adopt a second child from Malawi, officials said Thursday, but questions have already been raised over whether the newly divorced pop star will face obstacles because of her single mom status.

An official at the Malawi welfare department said Madonna, who is 50 and a mother of three, had filed adoption papers in the southern African country. Another person in Malawi close to the case said Madonna would be there this weekend and a court could hear her adoption case as soon as Monday.

A U.S. government official confirmed that an adoption bid by Madonna, an American, was under way.

They all spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the subject.

Madonna spokeswoman Liz Rosenberg in New York would not comment.

Years ago, the singer was accused of using her celebrity status to circumvent Malawian adoptions laws when she adopted her son David — allegations she denies. That adoption became final in 2008.

Now there are concerns that rules again will be broken for Madonna, as Malawi also does not approve adoptions for single or divorced parents.

However, the Malawi welfare official said each case is considered on its merit.

Malawian law is fuzzy on foreign adoptions. Regulations stipulate only that prospective parents undergo an 18- to 24-month assessment period in Malawi, a rule already bent when Madonna was allowed to take David to London.

Madonna met David in October 2006 at a Malawian orphanage. His mother had died and his father was unable to care for him. She and her then-husband, British filmmaker Guy Ritchie, took David to their London home but it took two years for the adoption to become official.

The adoption was a trying process for the singer, who said the criticism hurt. Some children's advocacy groups accused her of breaking up a family. They claimed the child, who is now 3, should have remained in Malawi and the star should have instead offered to support his father.

Rumors that Madonna wanted to adopt a girl from Malawi have been circulating for some time. But the first official hint came from the star herself last week.

In an interview in Malawi's leading daily The Nation, the singer said she was considering another adoption but would only do it if she had "the support of the Malawian people and government."

Before David's adoption was finalized in May last year, a Malawi welfare official paid the family two home visits and wrote in a report that Madonna was a "perfect mum."

If the adoption goes through, she would become a single mother of four. She also has an 8-year-old son, Rocco, with Ritchie and a 12-year-old daughter, Lourdes, from a previous relationship.

Madonna first traveled to Malawi in 2006 while doing charity work and filming a documentary on the devastating poverty and AIDS crisis there. Besides releasing her documentary "I Am Because We Are," she is also establishing a school for girls there.

Malawi is among the poorest countries in the world. Just over 14 percent of the country's 12 million people are infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, and an estimated 1 million children have been orphaned.

In an interview last year, Madonna said she planned to visit Malawi this month with all of her children, but it is unclear whether Madonna's children will accompany her on this trip.

She last visited Malawi in April 2007, when she brought David and Lourdes with her. The star and her entourage spent their time visiting projects for street children and orphanages, and opening a new day care center funded by her charity.

(China Daily/Agencies, March 27, 2009)