Taiwan's A-Mei, one of Asia's most popular singers, is lending her voice to a campaign to fight global hunger in exchange for the kindness she experienced from strangers during her impoverished youth.

The 36-year-old pop diva, real name Chang Hui Mei, was in Singapore to support the local chapter of the Christian charity World Vision in its efforts to raise awareness about starvation around the globe.

"When I was very young and living with my tribe, my family was really poor and our tribe had really poor facilities," she told reporters ahead of a 30-hour 'Famine Camp' involving 1,000 students that ended late Saturday.

The event, featuring A-Mei as a guest celebrity, was staged to give some of the affluent city-state's teenagers a taste of what it is like to starve. The participants were restricted to taking water only for 30 hours.

"These big brothers and sisters would bring food such as flour and rice for us, bring us to lessons and revise our schoolwork with us," recalled A-Mei, a member of Taiwan's ethnic Puyuma tribe.

"At the time, we thought, 'why were these outsiders so nice?' And whenever they gave us stuff, I felt really grateful and happy."

A-Mei, who overcame poverty to become one of the biggest sensations in the Mandarin pop music scene, was born in the mountains of eastern Taiwan and the third youngest of nine siblings.

"This camp would allow them to experience what less fortunate people in other parts are going through at this moment," said the singer, whose hits include "Nothing You Want After All" and "Holding Hands".

She said she hoped the experience would make the students realise "that they are very lucky so that when they grow up, they will be compelled to make a difference and change the world."

As an ambassador for World Vision in Taiwan, A-Mei has visited southern Sudan, in one of the world's poorest regions.

She also participated in fund-raising concerts in Taiwan and Hong Kong for victims of the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami.