(Cover) - EN Showbiz - Drew Barrymore never went to school as a child, fuelling her desire to learn more about children's education in Africa.

The 36-year-old actress recently returned from a trip to Kenya which has been chronicled in the September issue of Cond Nast Traveler.

The child star, who has gone on to have a long-lasting career in Hollywood, wanted to give back through the World Food Programme and has donated provisions and wells to villagers and helped fund a local primary school.

She said she had the desire to help when she learned that some Kenyan children walked miles to get to school.

"I was really moved. I never went to school myself," Drew shared. "I was doing a job and didn't have a kid's life."

"I wanted to learn more about why these kids were so passionate, walking so far and overfilling their classrooms."

But she said she felt awkward about meeting with the villagers at first and did not want to appear as an ignorant woman from America.

"I didn't want to be on a soapbox, this Westerner living in a bubble, so on the first trip I was a little nervous. I asked questions and listened a lot," she shared.

"When you find something like this that speaks to your heart," Drew said of the organisation, "it gives you the courage to look beyond your own problems and take the first small steps to try as an individual to make an impact."

While in Kenya, Drew dressed up in the traditional garb which included a cowhide dress with an ornate beaded collar.

The actress set up the Drew Barrymore Education Project in 2009 which has made a marked difference in the lives of women and girls in the country. (C) Cover Media