Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have released a defiant statement after their brief Nigerian tour. The couple left the country on Sunday (12 May) after spending three days there celebrating the 10th anniversary of the Invictus Games.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have praised their “unforgettable” tour of Nigeria amid a furore surrounding their charity’s paperwork. The couple visited the country for three days to mark the 10th anniversary of Prince Harry’s Invictus Games.

Taking to their website, the couple described the unofficial visit as “unforgettable” and said it will be the “first of many memorable trips”. The statement comes amid news of the state of California declaring the couple’s charity “delinquent”. The Archwell Foundation was given the status after “failing to submit [the] required annual report(s) and/or renewal fees.”

It is now unable to solicit or disburse charitable funds and faces being permanently suspended or revoked. According to reports, the charity was not aware of an issue with its paperwork, which it reportedly sent, but it has now reissued it. The Archwell Foundation should be able to resume operations within seven business days, pending the successful receipt of the paperwork. The news comes after King Charles yesterday revealed an unexpected side effect of his ongoing cancer treatment.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s defiant statement after Nigeria tour. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have released a defiant statement after their brief Nigerian tour. The couple left the country on Sunday (12 May) after spending three days there celebrating the 10th anniversary of the Invictus Games. The brief visit marked their first overseas trip since stepping down as working royals in 2020 and it was undertaken in their capacity as private citizens.

However, it had many hallmarks of a royal tour and the couple subsequently issued a statement to say it would be the “first of many memorable trips”. “The Duke and Duchess would like to extend their deepest gratitude to all the event organizers, military officials and the whole Nigerian community for their tremendous hospitality and the first of many memorable trips,” they wrote.

The couple, who lost their HRH titles when they stepped down as working royals, remain the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. Meghan Markle’s PR had her guard up during the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s tour of Nigeria. Miranda Barbot, the Sussex’s Vice President of Programs and Media Operations, had an interesting response when a journalist wished the couple good luck on Saturday (11 May).

“Hope everything goes well today,” the journalist said. “What do you mean?” she questioned. “What could go wrong?” Barbot quickly realised that Saturday’s comment was about the grey skies and not the tour: “Ah yes, rain,” she added. The remark was made ahead of a volleyball match at an outdoor sporting arena, where the couple were marking the 10th anniversary of Prince Harry’s Invictus Games.

The continuation of the celebrations comes after the Prince suffered two apparent snubs while marking the anniversary in the UK last week – the first was his father’s decision not to meet him on his brief trip and the second was the news that Prince William was about to become the colonel-in-chief of Harry’s old military regiment. The sight of Harry flying in, but unable to see his father will have saddened many. But, embarking on a ‘mini royal tour’ in Nigeria isn’t going to help heal family rifts which feel as raw as ever, says Tessa Dunlop