Meghan and Harry took part in an online chat with activist and Nobel Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai to celebrate the International Day of the Girl. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex spoke of the importance of education for all children, especially young women, and highlighted 130 million girls were not in education even before the coronavirus pandemic struck. The royal couple also pointed out the vital role young women have to play in the battle against climate change.
During the rare sit-down interview, the couple also gave an insight into what they have been doing during the pandemic.
A smiling Harry joked they had been spending time on the video platform Zoom, while Meghan revealed they have been able to enjoy a number of memorable “firsts” by their one-year-old son Archie.
The couple has been widely praised on Twitter by royal fans for the appearance in the virtual chat.
One user wrote: “Sussexes are definitely on another level! Gorgeous and inspiring.”
Another royal fan said: “Thanks Malala, Harry and Meghan. This was an informative and inspirational conversation today.”
Meanwhile, a third commented: “Meghan is so eloquent and insightful. Thank you Malala, Harry and Meghan for using your platform to speak up for others.”
When asked by Ms Yousafzai about why she has advocated for women’s education, the Duchess of Sussex said: “Similar to you, I see something that is so critical to be addressed and so critical to be fixed and that by fixing that one thing, you end up fixing multiple problems.
“What I realised very early on was that when women have a seat at the table, conversations in terms of policy change, conversations in terms of legislation, certainly in terms of just the dynamics of the community are all shifted, and typically when a woman is present at the table, she’s going to be advocating for the entire family.”
Meghan also explained “when young girls have access to education, everyone wins and everyone succeeds”.
Harry said: “We do take it for granted and it is a privilege but every single person, every single child, every single young person needs an education.”
Meghan, 39, who attended an all-girl Roman Catholic college in Los Angeles before graduating from Northwestern University School of Communication in Illinois, reflected on her own experiences and how fortunate she was growing-up.
She said: “Having the privilege of being able to go to school is something that I think oftentimes is taken for granted, it’s very difficult for a lot of people to recognise that just the ability to have a school book is a luxury for so many people.
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He said: “We were both there for his first steps, his first run, his first fall, his first everything.”
Meghan added: “And it’s just fantastic, because I think in so many ways we are fortunate to be able to have this time to watch him grow, and in the absence of COVID we would be travelling and working more externally, and we would have missed a lot of those moments.
“So I think it’s been a lot of good family time.”
