Cheryl Cole Anti-Malaria Ambassador

Cheryl Cole will visit some of Africa’s poorest regions in bid to aid in the fight against malaria.

The pop star wants to work as an anti-malaria ambassador, raising money to stop the spread of the disease which nearly killed her. In July, Cole was hospitalized after contracting the potentially fatal tropical disease during a trip to Tanzania with Dancing With The Stars pro Derek Hough and while she has been recovering from her bout with the disease, Cheryl’s decided she wants to help sufferers in the continent.

The “Fight for This Love” singer will go to the poverty-stricken areas to raise awareness of the illness, which causes 3,000 preventable deaths in the continent every day, a source told Britain’s Sunday Mirror newspaper.

“It is a very brave decision. Cheryl has thought long and hard about it. This is a life-changing, landmark experience for her. She’s seen how malaria destroys people’s lives and now has first-hand knowledge of just how serious it is. Cheryl got the best care possible when she got back from Tanzania and she is very grateful for it. But she is aware that millions of Africans are not so lucky.”

Cheryl, 27, hopes to travel back to Africa to meet the families of malaria victims and promote anti-malaria mosquito nets and tour remote hospitals.

“After what she has been through, you might have thought Africa was the last place she’d be wanting to go to. But the reverse is true.”