The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are undertaking engagements in Lahore for Day 4 of their Pakistan tour. The couple flew from Islamabad this morning, before being ferried to their first stop at SOS Children’s Villages Pakistan, a private social welfare program supporting orphaned and abandoned children.
The couple were given finger puppets so as to be able to join the children for a birthday party, where they participated in games and ate traditional Pakistani cakes. Kate also delivered her first – and likely only – speech of the tour in which she touched on the themes of childcare and early intervention, two issues close to her heart. The full text is included at the end of this post.
Next up was a cricket showcase at the National Academy. They met some of Pakistan’s top players and learned more about a program that promotes children getting involved in the sport.
Naturally, both William and Kate took turns with the bat for the next installment of their ongoing athletic competition (aka their marriage, I think), but William walked away the victor.
Style-wise, Kate is continuing to embrace local fashion. I think this might be the most consistently we’ve seen her do so during a tour. Usually there are nods and perhaps one or two standout ensembles, but she usually adheres pretty closely to her stalwart British labels. So, this is new and thus rather exciting. It’ll be interesting to see if she does this again in the future.
Today Kate is wearing a Shalwar kameez by Gul Ahmed and a shawl by Maheem Khan (the same Pakistani designer she’s featured throughout the tour). Kate looks fantastic in white, so I’m going to call this look a win. And I have to say, her hair is on point today!
I’ll cover the afternoon engagements in a separate post later today, so keep an eye out 🙂
The Full Text of Kate’s Speech
‘Assalam O Alaikum. Emaan, Ibrahim aur Daniyal apni salgirah pur bulanay ka bohat shukria.
‘We’ve had such an amazing time walking around the village and learning all about your lives. We have been really moved and touched by what we have seen, and by the happy home you have made.
‘I’m aware that many of you have experienced extremely difficult times in your lives. But it is inspiring to see how you have used your strength and positivity to help transform the lives of so many young children here.
‘Being here in Pakistan this week, William and I have seen on several occasions how family is at the heart of your culture.
‘Parents, children, aunts, uncles, grandparents all play important roles – you have reminded us exactly what family means.
‘You have shown us too that it is not simply a term that describes the relationship between blood relatives
‘Instead it describes those special bonds we share with those who make us feel safe and supported. It is the quality of those relationships that matters
‘Earlier this year I talked about the fact that it takes a village to raise a child. The village we have seen here today is the best representation of that ideal that I could have possibly imagined.
‘Together as a village you are transforming children’s lives and providing them with strong foundations to support all their families.
‘You have created a home, where children are given the love, protection, and support that will enable them to have a fairer chance in life.
‘Here, women who were once vulnerable, now play the most vital of roles as mothers and it is most heartening to see that you are not doing this alone.
‘Now onto the most important part. Iman, Ibrahim aur Daniyal ap sub ko salgirah bohat bohat mubarik ho. Thank you again for having us here.’