Shakira has been doing her part to help the cyclone-devastated Bangladesh.

The Grammy winner, who's also a Unicef ambassador, was in the country for a three-day visit where she toured several coastal villages and chatted to people who lost members of their family in the disaster.

The singer said: "I will never forget the faces of the mothers who lost their children, or the story of Shahnaz, the little girl who died holding onto her book, or the marks on the arms of the young mother, who lost both her children."

She also said that little was left of the school she visited in the village of Mirzapur, but it still provided an "oasis" for the children.

"I am more convinced than ever that education is the key to so many of the difficulties that our children face in countries like mine or in developing countries like this one. It's the key to a better and safer world," she said.

The singer also visited Unicef-sponsored education programmes for children in northern Rajshahi city on Tuesday.

Cyclone Sidr struck Bangladesh on November 15, killing nearly 3,500 people and leaving millions homeless.

It is considered to be the worst disaster to hit the South Asian country since 1991, when a storm killed around 140,000 people.

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