Harry and Meghan say lockdown has allowed them spend time with Archie and ‘watch him grow’

‘We were both there for his first steps, his first fall, everything,’ says Prince Harry

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have said the coronavirus pandemic has allowed them to spend more time with their son, Archie.

Speaking to activist Malala Yousafzai as part of International Day of the Girl, the couple were asked how they’d been spending their time during the Covid-19 outbreak.

After teasing that they’d spent most of it on Zoom calls, the Harry and Meghan said they had been with their “little one” and explained that their work normally inhibits the amount of quality time they can spend with their one-year-old.

“We were both their for his first steps, his first run, his first fall… everything,” said Harry.

Meghan added: “It's just fantastic because I think in so many ways we are fortunate to be able to have this time to watch him grow, and in the absence of Covid, we would be travelling and working more externally and we'd miss a lot of those moments. So I think it’s been a lot of really good family time.”

Harry said that he had also been grateful for the time he’d been able to spend with his son.

“Those are really special moments,” he added.

The couple also spoke to Yousafzai about female education and empowerment.

When asked about why Meghan has advocated for women's education, she replied: "Similar to you, I see something that is so critical to be addressed and so critical to be fixed and that by fixing that one thing, you end up fixing multiple problems.

"What I realised very early on was that when women have a seat at the table, conversations in terms of policy change, conversations in terms of legislation, certainly in terms of just the dynamics of the community are all shifted, and typically when a woman is present at the table, she's going to be advocating for the entire family."

The trio also spoke about the impact that the pandemic has had on female education.

“So much is at stake if we don't give a young woman an opportunity to learn and to get an education,” said Meghan.

"I think there's no greater time for all of us to acknowledge that with everything else happening with Covid, on International Day of the Girl, for each of us to make a commitment that yes, the layers upon layers that are happening in this context of Covid-19 are immense but all it has done is add on top of the problems that already existed."

When asked about the role of female education in terms of tackling climate change, the Duke of Sussex said: "The importance of girls' education to defer climate change is absolutely critical.

"And again, with an education, it provides money, it provides an income, which makes you less susceptible to disaster, less consumption, so all of these things are so deeply connected to one another that I think education at a young age opens up so many doors and so many opportunities and so many possibilities.

You can watch the full discussion on YouTube here.