Shakira has pledged to rebuild a minimum of 10 Colombian schools following a catastrophic earthquake that claimed hundreds of lives.
The pop star made the promise during an unannounced trip to Quibdó, the provincial capital of Chocó, which was devastated last week by Colombia’s biggest quake in years.
The 49-year-old, whose full name is Shakira Mebarak Ripoll, surveyed ruined classrooms and hugged schoolchildren.
“What worries me the most is that schools are not rebuilt once this emergency is over,” she said.
“Every day that children don’t go to school is a day they miss out on their future.”
Joining her on the visit was Howard Buffett, the philanthropist son of billionaire Warren Buffett and a long-standing supporter of initiatives in Colombia.
His organization, the Howard G. Buffett foundation, will partner on the reconstruction project alongside Shakira’s charity, Fundación Pies Descalzos, also known as the Barefoot Foundation.
“When she calls, I come,” Buffett said.
Shakira also revealed that both Global Citizen and Live Nation have each pledged $500,000 towards the recovery efforts.
The magnitude 7.4 tremor struck vast parts of western Colombia on 10 August, leaving at least 287 dead and destroying more than 26,000 homes, according to official figures.
While state authorities list 194 people as missing, independent civilian databases estimate the figure could exceed 4,100.
The epicenter of the disaster was Chocó, one of the country's most impoverished regions, where the local government reported Monday that over 3,100 houses were flattened and more than 265 educational facilities were left damaged.
“It’s a place I love, a place where I’ve seen our students grow in our classrooms,” Shakira said in a video posted on X by the Colombian news outlet La FM.
Her foundation, which focuses on educational access for youth in Colombia, has been in Chocó for 22 years, running two schools from which hundreds of students have graduated, she said. “I really want to see it rebuild again.”
Assessing damage across Chocó has proven difficult for aid organisations due to poor communications throughout the region, which is similar in size to Switzerland.
With limited road connections linking the province to the rest of the nation, its many towns and settlements rely primarily on waterways and unpaved routes.
Figures released in 2025 by Colombia’s national government reveal that most of Chocó's 600,000 residents live in poverty.
The area is largely populated by Indigenous tribes and Afro-Colombian communities.
“There is not a way to alleviate the pain of so many, there are no magic solutions,” Shakira said during her visit to a large high school in Quibdó.
“But what there is, is commitment to be here alongside those from Chocó, to not abandon El Chocó like it historically has been abandoned, until every Colombian and every person from Chocó can return to their normal lives like they deserve and all the children can return to their schools and dream of the futures they deserve.”
Shakira, known for the hits “Whenever, Wherever” and the World Cup anthem “Dai Dai”, is a longtime supporter of educational causes. She told reporters Monday she planned to dedicate all her “personal efforts” to rebuilding a local technological university in Chocó.
After Venezuela’s twin earthquakes in June, she announced that the Fifa Global Citizen Education Fund would commit $500,000 to education recovery there.
On Sunday, Marc Anthony and Chayanne joined dozens of other artists at a Miami benefit concert and live fundraiser for both countries' earthquake relief.
Colombian singer Karol G pledged to match fan donations to her Con Cora Foundation during her three-night run at SoFi Stadium near Los Angeles last weekend. She will also join Maluma, Sebastián Yatra and others at a benefit concert in Bogotá this Sunday.
