She’s always been one of the most stylish royal family members and Sophie Wessex once again dressed to impress for her latest royal engagement. The 54-year-old is currently in Kenya to attend the 12th Commonwealth Women’s Affairs Ministers Meeting.
The two-day event – hosted by the government of Kenya – aimed to provide more leadership positions for women in private and public sectors, more political engagement at all levels, more economic and entrepreneurial opportunities, and more strides toward creating a world where gender equality is truly a reality. Sophie was one of the very special guests at the event and joined ministers of Women’s Affairs from 28 Commonwealth countries who came together to turn commitment to action on achieving gender equality and empowering women.
It came after Sophie previously pledged her commitment to make two key areas a central pillar of her work. The first was The Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda and the second was The UK’s Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative.
In a series of photographs shared on The Royal Family Twitter page, The mother-of-two smiled as she posed alongside other leaders at the event. Sophie opted for a stylish white frock complete with a beautiful floral pattern.
The wife of Prince Edward wore her blonde locks in a bun and accessorised with a pair of simple heels and pearl drop earrings. Speaking at the event, Sophie passed on a special message from Queen Elizabeth.
“Today I bring you special greetings from Her Majesty The Queen, who is delighted this meeting is convening once again and as you would expect, I am honour bound to return with a good account of the full and productive outcomes of this conference,” she told the audience. “Gender equality is a fundamental right but it is not yet the reality for many. Changing this is the best chance we have in meeting some of the most pressing challenges of our time – from financial and economic crisis, lack of healthcare, climate change, to violence against women and escalating conflicts. Women are not only more affected by these problems, but also provide some of the solutions and leadership to solve them; it is imperative that women are included in addressing these issues.”
She described herself as “a passionate advocate of the Commonwealth” and said she thought the family of nations can play a vital role when it comes to ending gender inequality and discrimination. She continued: “To truly achieve sustainable peace and security, it is imperative that women’s voices are heard when peace is being negotiated. It is so encouraging to hear about the positive impact of initiatives such as the network of Women Mediators across the Commonwealth and FEMWISE, in helping to build the capacity and confidence of women mediators and to champion their role in building peace.”
The conference wasn’t Sophie’s only official engagement in Kenya. She was also spotted the RefuSHE Girls Empowerment Program where she met with refugee girls from Rwanda. This program teaches refugee women and girls textile skills, from hand and machine stitching to tie-dye, helping them to earn an independent income.
Sophie was treated to some of the girls’ beautiful handmade products on display and added a beautiful green scarf to her outfit for this part of the visit. She also met with young women and girls who have fled conflict in neighbouring countries, and are now being helped by the program. They are now provided with shelter, education, and community outreach services to thousands of refugees in Kenya.
Video footage also showed the Countess dancing with some of the young women at the program, with Sophie officially thanking her dance partner through the official Royal Twitter page. A message read: “An extra special thank you to The Countess’s dance partner, 15 year old Gizele from the Democratic Republic of the Congo!”
While in Kenya, Sophie will join the launch of the next Platform for Girls’ Education policy paper on gender responsive education sector planning, which will encourage states to adopt a whole system approach to advancing gender equality in and through education. She will also attend the Time For Justice: Putting Survivors First international conference on tackling conflict-related sexual violence in November.