Kate Middleton and Prince William raise £1million for charity in one day

PRINCE William and Kate yesterday expressed their delight at raising more than £1million in a single day for the victims of East Africa’s famine.

The couple hailed the ­“overwhelming generosity of the British public” for the Unicef appeal – but remain “hugely concerned” for children still at risk.


The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge visited the Unicef emergency supply centre in Denmark to publicise the plight of East Africa – where 320,000 children are at risk of death.

On that day alone, Unicef’s website received 226% more visitors and within 24 hours £1million was donated – enough to feed 100,000 malnourished children for two weeks.

The astonishing success highlights the popularity of William and Kate and their ability to help good causes. An Ark charity dinner they attended in June raised £17million for children.

And guests who paid up to £60,000 for a ticket to mingle with them at a California charity polo match in July helped raise millions more.

Both events targeted the wealthy, but the royal couple were overwhelmed last night that ordinary people had dug so deep.

During their visit to the Copenhagen supply warehouse on November 2, the couple helped pack emergency boxes for Somalia, Kenya, Ethiopia and Djibouti. A clearly moved Kate said: “We need to try and raise awareness.”

And William added: “As disastrous as what’s going on in the rest of the world financially is, what’s going on in East Africa puts things into perspective.”

A spokesman for the couple said yesterday: “The Duke and Duchess are delighted to hear of the overwhelming generosity of the British public.

“They remain hugely concerned for the children still at risk, but view this as extremely welcome news.”

Famine was declared four months ago after the worst drought in 50 years. So far Unicef has treated 108,000 malnourished children, ­vaccinated 1.2 million children against measles and provided 2.2 million people with safe water.

Unicef UK executive director, David Bull, said: “We are grateful to their Royal Highnesses and everybody who is digging deep for these children.

By showcasing the continuing need, their Royal Highnesses are helping to save children’s lives.”

Mirror