Pop princess Shakira shares her views on economic underdevelopment, blaming the problems of Latin America on its long history of colonialism and war.
The Colombian star told UK newspaper the Daily Mail that “people need to know more about Latin America, to understand that it is the most unequal region in the world, where a few have everything and many people have nothing, that 35 million children in South America don’t have access to education of any kind, don’t receive any kind of stimulation, or nutrition.”
“It has paid the consequences of years of colonialism, of conflict, but it is a continent with so much potential, so much to offer to the world,” the singer added.
The Latin icon explained that when growing up in Baranquilla she was kept on the right track by her family, in which she is one of nine siblings. Shakira recounted how her father would take her to see “the children who lived in the local park, who had no shoes, who sniffed glue, to teach me that there were others who were worse off than I was.”
Shakira’s new album “She Wolf” is out now.