Colombian President Alvaro Uribe on Monday spoke out in praise of Shakira’s work to help Colombia’s children.
At the 19th Ibero-American summit in Portugal, Shakira signed a cooperation agreement on behalf of the ALAS Foundation (Fundacion America Latina en Accion Solidaria), a charity she co-founded, with the Latin American General Secretariat and the Organization of Latin American States.
Uribe welcomed the agreement, saying that “Colombian people feel very proud of the work that Shakira is doing for the children of Colombia. We think that it is very important that this matter become a main subject for the continent and the Ibero-American Secretary.”
The document is a commitment to achieve universal education for children in the region by 2021. The singer, who is known for her philanthropy as well as for her music, also addressed the summit, and said that “Early education is to human life what a foundation is to a building; if the foundations are not built strong enough, we will be always repairing it.”