Prince Harry knows the importance of personal connection when it comes to his and wife Meghan Markle’s work.
Speaking to PEOPLE on the couple’s three-day trip to Nigeria, the Duke of Sussex says, “It is hugely important for us to meet directly with people, supporting our causes and listening, in order to bring about solutions, support and positive change.”
Looking to the future, Harry and Meghan are anticipating more travel opportunities to further their initiatives. “There’s only so much one can do from home and over Zoom, so we look forward to traveling more because the work matters. Whether it’s the Archewell Foundation, Invictus or any of our other causes, there will always be reasons to meet the people at the heart of our work,” the duke says.
Harry and Meghan traveled to Nigeria to champion their Archewell Foundation’s mental health initiatives for young people and to promote the Invictus Games, which Nigeria joined for the first time last year.
“I’m so happy with the growth of Invictus and to include Nigeria,” the Duke of Sussex says. “You know what Africa means to me over the years. It is a very, very special place, and to be able to include Nigeria now [in Invictus], I’m very happy.” The Duke of Sussex also recalled his emotional visit to a military hospital in Kaduna, which PEOPLE joined, and the “very low morale” he felt among the approximately 50 men there.
Out of those 50, there were two guys who were smiley and happy. And they were the two who were in Germany [at the Düsseldorf Invictus Games] last year,” Harry says, emphasizing the “transformative power” of sport. “That experience of knowing what life post-injury is like gives people so much hope. And hope, hope, hope is a huge part of this,” he says.
