Prince Harry has begged “people at the top” to “start listening” as he kicked off his solo trip to Africa without Meghan Markle.

After several days in New York last week and a fleeting visit to the UK earlier this week, the Duke of Sussex has now headed to Lesotho for his first trip to Southern Africa in five years. While there, he reunited with Prince Seeiso of Lesotho, with whom he co-founded his charity Sentebale.

Set up in 2006, the organisation supports children and young people in Lesotho and Botswana living with, or who are at risk from, HIV. Last night, Harry caught up with Prince Seeiso around a bonfire at a children’s centre in the small country.

And there he talked about the impact of his Sentebale charity and made an impassioned plea. During a speech, Harry said: “We’re hitting the targets, not just Sentebale but all of the departments are, and it’s making a massive difference, and it is this surge of energy and optimism and the voice of young people ranging from six to 25 – and the biggest difference of which really needs more work, is when people from the top start listening.”

At the bonfire welcome event, Harry was also greeted by those who support Sentebale and enjoyed a performance from dancers and a choir. Earlier in the day, it emerged he had enjoyed lunch with Princess Senate Seeiso in Lesotho, which is often called the ‘Mountain Kingdom’.

During the rest of his Africa trip, Harry is expected to gather with world business leaders and philanthropists in the region to work towards fostering prosperity in Southern African communities, specifically for young people, with a series of events in Lesotho and Johannesburg, South Africa.