'Smash' Star Katharine McPhee Heads to Africa for Charity Project (Photos)

Laura Hajar

Smash star Katharine McPhee is taking a break from her day job to give back to the people of Africa. The singer-turned-actress, who rose to fame on American Idol, has named Malaria No More as her charity of choice this year, and is currently visiting the impoverished nation to distribute mosquito nets and malaria treatment medication. 

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McPhee arrived in Accra earlier this week, where she participated in a durbar -- or formal gathering of village chiefs. During the ceremony, in which the chiefs and local families showed off their dance moves, McPhee jumped out of her seat to join them. Later on, the singer partook in a secondary school play about a boy who had contracted malaria.

Most importantly, McPhee used the opportunity to present the health director with Vestergaard Frandsen-made mosquito nets. “They will be put to good use,” the director said. “And please know you will always have a home back here in Ghana.”

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Next, McPhee will travel to Ouagadougou, Burkina Fasco to visit a school she helped to build through her McPhee Outreach project. After years of success, the school was forced to close temporarily after students began to miss class due to a rampant malaria problem in the region.

See photos from the first leg of her trip below, in which McPhee donned a white tank top, hat and what appears to be a locally made scarf.