Colombian narrator, among the 100 most influential in the world

Vidal was born in the Chocó department in the Colombian Pacific. All his life he dedicated himself to the narration of Afro traditions.

With her work “Aguas de Estuario”, she became the first winner of the creation grant for Afro-Colombian, black, Raizal and Palenquera authors.

He also received an honorable mention for his certification in African-Latino Studies from Harvard University.

In its publication, the BBC indicated that “Velia Vidal is a lover of shared reading. She is the founder and director of Motete, an organization that promotes reading and literacy as well as the unique culture of Chocó. She also organizes the Chocó reading and writing festival, seeing literature as a tool to fight inequality and racism in one of the most disadvantaged regions of Colombia ”.

The British media also recalled that Vidal started his ‘Motete’ organization with a basket full of books and tangerines, which he carried every Sunday around the popular neighborhoods of Quibdó, the capital of Chocó.

“The reception was impressive, her illnesses decreased and people interested in helping her began to arrive. Among them was Virgilio Barco Isakson, an economist dedicated to finding underfunded initiatives,” the BBC recounts.

Barco said Vidal is “transforming people’s lives, opening their minds, in neighborhoods with enormous social exclusion.” Subsequently, Motete received funding from various companies and became one of the most important cultural foundations in the Colombian Pacific.

Velia Vidal’s goal in Chocó is to promote reading and the right to culture with her initiative ‘Selva de letras’, a program to help bridge gaps, train teachers and create a cultural agenda, with the incentive of meeting spaces.