In the midst of the Grammy celebrations last week, French Montana announced his partnership with international advocacy organization Global Citizen as an ambassador. Within this role, Montana will champion universal health coverage and education in Africa and developing communities globally.
In March 2017, the rapper flew to Uganda to film the visuals for his hit song “Unforgettable” in addition to his documentary Project Unforgettable: My Story, Their Reality and was shocked by the reality of health coverage for a community named Kampala, where a health clinic with two rooms and one ambulance served a community of 260,000 people.
The “Shot Caller” decided to partner with Global Citizen in support of MAMA HOPE, an organization that advocates for global entrepreneurship as a way to end extreme poverty. The Bad Boy artist provided maternal health care (including a prenatal care clinic, staff housing, a birth house, and a new ambulance) to 300,000 people in rural Budondo, Uganda.
“I am honored to become Global Citizen’s newest Ambassador,” said Montana at last week’s celebration. “My life changed forever after my trip to Uganda and I am excited to continue engaging my fans to use their voices to advocate for universal health coverage and education for those living in extreme poverty.”
One in five children in Africa lacks access to basic, life-saving vaccines according to Global Citizen CEO, Hugh Evans.
“We are so happy to be partnering with French Montana, who embodies the true meaning of being a Global Citizen and are grateful for his commitment to use his platform to lift up those in most need. Together with French in 2018, we will call on governments to take concrete steps towards realizing Universal Health Coverage for their people,” said Evans.
Montana hasn’t forgotten about his roots as he has been working to make the same strides that were made in Uganda with his home country of Morocco. His first plan is to equip schools in Casablanca with computers, books, an arts program for the children, training for teachers, and outreach support for parents.