Shakira interrupted her summer break, took a flight, and landed in Quibdó, the capital of Chocó, to see for herself the aftermath of the magnitude 7.4 earthquake on August 10: collapsed schools, families left homeless, and a historically forgotten region hit once again.
The woman from Barranquilla arrived in cargo pants, a black t-shirt, and sneakers, walking through the devastated areas. She came with concrete commitments in hand.
Before the gathered media at the Carrasquilla Technological Industrial College, the department's mayor announced her plans for reconstruction without hesitation: "I am going to dedicate all my personal efforts to rebuilding the Technological University of Chocó. Howard is going to help us, along with the Pies Descalzos Foundation, to build ten new schools in Chocó, which is why it was so important to bring him, which is why it was so important to come today."
That Howard is Howard Graham Buffett, the son of billionaire Warren Buffett and a personal friend of the artist with whom he has been collaborating on educational projects in the country for years. They toured the damaged facilities together and witnessed firsthand the extent of the disaster: nearly 200 affected schools and 40 completely collapsed, leaving thousands of children without a place to study.
The amount that Shakira put on the table is significant: 1,250,000 dollars already gathered to begin the reconstruction. The Global Citizen movement contributed 500,000 dollars, Live Nation another 500,000, and CAF added an additional 250,000, all at the direct initiative of the singer. "My commitment is concrete. We have already raised one million two hundred fifty thousand dollars to start this reconstruction process," she stated.
Shakira's connection to Chocó did not start with this tragedy. Her Fundación Pies Descalzos has been working in the region for 22 years: it opened its first office there in 2004 and a year later inaugurated the María Berchmans headquarters in Quibdó. Thanks to this effort, around 400 students have graduated, and 70% have continued their university studies, many of them precisely at the Technological University that now promises to be rebuilt. “Seeing it in such disrepair is heartbreaking,” she said upon witnessing the condition of the building.
What concerns the artist the most is not the immediate chaos, but the forgetfulness that often follows. "What worries me most is that after the state of emergency passes, so many people will be left forgotten and affected, and our children may not be able to return to school," she warned. She added emphatically: "Every day that children do not go to school is a day we pause their future, and that we cannot allow."
"El Chocó is not alone. Colombia is not alone. We are here together until we rise again," promised Shakira to the media, making it clear that this journey is not the end but the starting point of a commitment that, according to her, will be measured week by week and month by month.
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