Shakira: Educating the Children of the World

Written by Manfred Phua.

Colombia... A country pockmarked by injustice, civil war, political conflicts, social strife and inequality. If you’re not able to get access to education as a young child in Colombia, chances are you’ll probably be enticed to join the gangs, drug cartels or even enter prostitution. Education in countries such as the United States or Singapore may seem like a ‘natural’ part of growing up, but in Colombia, education is a luxury, not a right of a citizen. With 2 million children at risk, Colombia needs help. It needs a champion. It needs an intervention. Enter Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll, better known as Shakira.

With 50 million albums sold worldwide, two Grammy awards and seven Latin Grammies under her name, it is no wonder that Shakira ends up on Forbes 100 Most Powerful Women. But it is not solely because of her awards and accolades that she is on that list: Shakira is the Chair of the Global Campaign for Education and also became UNICEF’s youngest Goodwill Ambassador in 2003. She is also the founder of the Barefoot Foundation. Founded in 1995 when she was only 18, the goal of Barefoot Foundation is to ensure that children in Colombia have access to quality education. That is a powerful dream as Colombia is home to nearly 2 million unschooled children, and her foundation has touched the lives of an impressive 28,000 children.

Her philanthropic ideology can be attributed to her father, who brought Shakira to a local park when she was young. When she saw the orphans who lived in the park, she decided that she would help these children. She told herself, “one day I’m going to help these kids when I become a famous artist.”

Shakira is just as amazing now as when she was younger. It was recently reported on the news that she had just travelled to Cartagena in Colombia (her home country) to inaugurate a new school that was paid for through the help of her charity foundation, Barefoot Foundation.

Instead of using her fame and status to propel herself higher in her career, she has redirected the attention that the media is showering her towards her charity and the plight of disadvantaged children worldwide. She hopes that by channeling the attention to the cause, greater awareness can be created and more will join her cause to provide education for the young.

After reading countless stories about her, watching her Youtube interviews and even her Oxford Speech in 2009 where she addressed the importance of education and talked about how education is the road to world peace, I was simply blown away. It is amazing what one person can do, even from a young age if he or she puts her heart and soul into making a difference in the world.