KIGALI (AFP) - Israeli-American actress Natalie Portman is in Rwanda shooting a clip to promote a Jewish-funded youth village for children orphaned by the 1994 genocide, officials said.

"The American film star is currently in Rwanda shooting a film on the genocide," an official close to the ministry of culture told AFP on condition of anonymity.

The young Hollywood star arrived quietly in the genocide-scarred central African country earlier this week.

Israeli media has reported that the clip she is shooting about the new village will be aired in a few weeks on the Oprah Winfrey Show, America's best-rated television programme.

The village, funded by American Jewish donors, will be developed along the lines of Israeli youth villages created for orphaned Holocaust survivors.

It is due to be inaugurated in August.

An estimated 800,000 people, mainly Tutsis and moderate Hutus, were massacred in Rwanda in 1994.

Portman visited Rwanda in June last year for a ceremony in which 23 baby mountain gorillas were given names by celebrities in a bid to boost the country's conservation efforts and the tourism industry.

Rwandan President Paul Kagame was in Jerusalem last month to attend celebrations marking the 60th anniversary of Israel's creation. The two countries have enjoyed strong ties in recent years.

Source: AFP