Shakira’s $3.68 million contribution helps Cartagena school educate 1,000+ children yearly

In 2014, Colombian singer Shakira helped open a major new school in one of Cartagena’s most vulnerable neighbourhoods. Through her Fundación Pies Descalzos, she contributed $3.68 million toward the $8 million construction of the Institución Educativa Fundación Pies Descalzos Lomas del Peyé, a 7,780-square-metre campus in the La María neighbourhood. The school was designed for up to 1,700 students and continues to serve more than 1,000 children each year, according to Fundación Pies Descalzos and reports published by La Nación.Twelve years after its opening, the campus remains a visible example of how celebrity philanthropy can support long-term community infrastructure. It was not a short-term donation or a one-off event, but a school built to provide classrooms, meals, recreation, and educational opportunity for children living in an area with significant social and economic challenges.A school in a vulnerable neighbourhoodLomas del Peyé is located in La María, a neighbourhood in Cartagena that Fundación Pies Descalzos identifies as one of the city’s most vulnerable areas. The school serves children living in informal settlements, particularly in areas behind the city’s airport. T...