Posted: 20:52, July 19, 2022 | Updated: 23:08, 19 July 2022
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have been named as speakers at the United Nations commemoration of Nelson Mandela as part of an ongoing, secret project with the Nelson Mandela Foundation organized through their company Archewell, DailyMail.com can reveal.
The pair were also flown to New York by the office of South Africa’s ambassador to the UN, Mathu Joyini, although it remains unclear whether they traveled by private jet or commercial flight.
Harry’s speech was given “as part of the Foundation already working with their company Archewell on a Mandela-related project,” a foundation spokesman said on Tuesday.
They declined to elaborate as the project has yet to be announced, but said it is rooted in “leadership development.”
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle at the UN in New York on Monday. Harry was the keynote speaker at the UN’s Nelson Mandela International Day event
A spokesman for Archewell did not immediately respond to inquiries.
It explains Harry’s choice to speak at the United Nations – something that baffled some pundits and stumped members of the South African media.
Arrangements were made by Mathu Joyini, South Africa’s Ambassador to the UN, and her office
Harry used his 15-minute speech to criticize the Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade and preach about climate change.
He spoke about his mother, the late Princess Diana, her bond with Mandela and his love of Africa, where he said he realized he had a “soulmate” in Meghan.
Megan watched proudly from the sparse crowd.
Archewell is the couple’s charity and umbrella under which they have launched a podcast and a Netflix series.
There are three branches of the company. Archewell Foundation, Archewell Productions and Archewell Audio.
It is not clear under which section the work with the Mandela Foundation falls.
Ndaba Mandela, grandson of the civil rights icon, said on Monday night that Harry and Meghan were “worlds apart” from his grandfather.
Harry used his 15-minute speech to criticize the Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade and preach about climate change
Harry and Meghan’s company, Archewell, has three branches – its charity, its production arm and a podcast arm
“They can’t be compared on any level,” he said during an appearance on Piers Morgan’s uncensored TalkTV show.
“There are no parallels at all.
“Because you’ll obviously see someone fighting for black dignity against a vicious tyrant like Apartheid, as opposed to someone finding their identity outside of said institution.
“Obviously these are very different things,” he said.
South African newspaper The Sunday Times jokingly compared Harry’s situation to Mandela’s, calling Harry the “Duke of Los Angeles”.
“He is in exile. Just like Madiba. No, sorry, of course, he was imprisoned for 27 years on Robben Island. The same, the same.
“Harry is imprisoned in his gilded pleasure palace in Montecito with a podcast program and documentary crew following him.”
