Prince Harry and Meghan Markle will tour Nigeria next month following an invitation by the country’s chief of defence staff.
“The visit is to consolidate Nigeria’s stronghold at the [Invictus] game and the possibility of hosting the event [in] later years,” defence spokesperson Tukur Gusau said in a statement on Sunday.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex share a close bond with Nigeria, a West African nation.
In a significant debut last year, Nigeria made its first appearance at Prince Harry’s Invictus Games and clinched both gold and bronze medals, marking a historic milestone as the first African country to join the event.
Prince Harry initiated the Invictus Games in 2014, a sporting event dedicated to wounded military personnel.
During Nigeria’s participation in Dusseldorf, Germany, last year, Nigeria’s Defense Minister, Mohammed Badaru Abubakar, expressed interest in hosting the games, as mentioned by Brigadier General Gusau.
Although the specific date of Harry and Meghan’s visit is yet to be disclosed, they plan to engage in a range of activities during their trip, including meeting military members and experiencing local cultural traditions.
The news of the royal visit has sparked excitement across Nigeria, particularly because Meghan has ancestral ties to the country. In 2022, the Duchess of Sussex revealed that genealogy tests uncovered her Nigerian heritage, estimating her ancestry at 43% Nigerian.
“Nigeria welcomes our daughter!” one Nigerian said on X, formerly Twitter.
