Barefoot Foundation () is a Colombian charity founded by

Shakira Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll ( , ; born 2 February 1977) is a Colombian singer-songwriter. Referred to as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Latin Music", she has had a Cultural impact of Shakira, significant impact on the ...

in 1997, with the aim of helping poor and impoverished children. The Barefoot Foundation

mission statement A mission statement is a short statement of why an organization exists, what its overall goal is, the goal of its operations: what kind of product or service it provides, its primary customers or market, and its geographical region of operation ...

is "The Barefoot Foundation works to ensure that every Colombian child can exercise their right to a quality education. Our model targets displaced and vulnerable communities by addressing their unique needs." The foundation's main focus is on aid through education, and the organization has five schools across Colombia that provide education and meals for 4,000 children. Shakira was honored with the Hero Award at the

2014 Radio Disney Music Awards The 2014 Radio Disney Music Awards were held on April 26, 2014, at the Nokia Theatre L.A. Live in Los Angeles, California. The ceremony was edited and aired on April 27, 2014 on Radio Disney and Disney Channel. The big winner was Selena Gomez tak ...

for her work with the foundation.

2004 efforts

In 2004 the work of the Foundation turned to Shakira's hometown of

Barranquilla Barranquilla () is the capital district of the Atlántico department in Colombia. It is located near the Caribbean Sea and is the largest city and third port in the Caribbean region of Colombia, Caribbean coast region; as of 2018, it had a popul ...

. The Foundation built two new schools, Escuela Las Americas and Escuela Siete de Abril. The schools brought change to two neighborhoods that had been devastated by displacement, homelessness and poverty. The two Barefoot schools provided services for 990 children. That same year, Barefoot initiated work in

Soacha Soacha is an autonomous municipality of the department of Cundinamarca in Colombia, and part of the Metropolitan Area of Bogotá. It has an important industrial zone and is home to mostly working-class families. Soacha borders Bojacá and Mosq ...

, Cundinamarca, a suburb on the outskirts of

Bogotá Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish Imperial period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city, capital and largest city ...

. According to the Colombian Social Welfare Network,

has one of the highest rates of incoming victims of displacement. Their work began at the Gabriel Garcia Marquez and El Minuto schools in the ''Altos de Cazuca'' neighborhoods, providing opportunities for another 980 children. The year 2004 was significant for the Barefoot Foundation. They reached many of their goals, working with children whose lives were disrupted because of the

Colombian conflict The Colombian conflict () began on May 27, 1964, and is a low-intensity asymmetric war between the government of Colombia, far-right paramilitary groups, crime syndicates and far-left guerrilla groups fighting each other to increase their i ...

. Many children were given access to an education, better nutrition, and a new sense of hope. The foundation also initiated a school cafeteria that was managed totally by the neighborhood moms.

Funding

Support for the foundation comes from contributions by Shakira and donations from national and international companies who care about social responsibility. They also work with multilateral corporations who endorse special projects and have formed alliances with government agencies. During February 2008, Shakira auctioned some of her tour clothes and guitars on

eBay eBay Inc. ( , often stylized as ebay) is an American multinational e-commerce company based in San Jose, California, that allows users to buy or view items via retail sales through online marketplaces and websites in 190 markets worldwide. ...

to support her foundation. In February 2011, the

FC Barcelona Futbol Club Barcelona (), commonly known as FC Barcelona and colloquially as Barça (), is a professional Football club (association football), football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of ...

Foundation and Barefoot reached an agreement for children's education through sport.Serafín Hildag
El Barça llega a un acuerdo solidario con Shakira
, March 2, 2011, elmundodeportivo.es

References

External links

* {{Shakira Barranquilla

Educational charities Child-related organisations in Colombia Children's rights organizations Organizations established in 1997