Shakira and Colombia Pledge Billions to Rebuild After Earthquake

A magnitude-7.4 earthquake centered in San José del Palmar on August 10 killed at least 287 people and destroyed over 26,000 dwellings across 472 Colombian municipalities. The disaster caused severe infrastructure losses, including over 3,000 damaged schools and hundreds of destroyed roads and bridges. While the government reports 143 to 194 people missing, some civilian databases estimate the number exceeds 4,100.

Abelardo de la Espriella, President of Colombia, declared an economic emergency and announced a reconstruction cost of approximately 30 trillion pesos ($9.5 billion). To fund the recovery, the government activated a $200 million World Bank loan and launched a Reconstruction Miracle Plan, including a specific Marshall Plan for the historically neglected Chocó region. International aid has arrived from Israel, Ecuador, and the United States, with the latter pledging $26.5 million.

On August 18, singer Shakira visited Quibdó to pledge personal and corporate support for the Chocó province. Through a collaboration between her Barefoot Foundation and the Howard G. Buffett Foundation, she committed to reconstructing 10 schools and the Technological University of Chocó. Financial contributions include $500,000 each from Live Nation and the FIFA Global Citizen Education Fund, and $250,000 from the CAF Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean. Shakira also urged the governments of Canada, Japan, and the United Kingdom to support the region's recovery.