Prince Harry, Meghan Markle receive over 20 gifts from Nigeria tour

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex concluded a three-day tour in Nigeria last week.

During their Nigeria tour, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle received over 20 gifts, now unrestricted by royal protocol, reported GB news. Returning from Nigeria, the couple flew back to the US on an 18-hour flight to Los Angeles earlier this week. 

Their tour spanned three days across Nigerian cities Abuja and Lagos, from Friday to Sunday. Throughout their engagements, they were gifted over 20 items, which they would not have been allowed to keep if they were still working royals.

However, since stepping down as working members of the monarchy in 2020, Meghan and Harry are no longer bound by such restrictions. Their trip to Nigeria was not an official royal tour, freeing them from the need to adhere to royal protocol regarding gift acceptance.

The official policy states that gifts should be refused "where there are concerns about the propriety or motives of the donor or the gift itself".

It adds regarding gifts on international engagements: "In all cases, and particularly on official overseas trips, organisations and individuals should be discouraged from offering extravagant gifts, i.e. gifts of high monetary value.

"Whilst always remaining sensitive to local custom, Households should explore alternative gestures of goodwill during preliminary discussions about engagements."

The policy states regarding receiving gifts in the UK: "[It should] normally be declined, unless they are offered as a souvenir of an official visit to the enterprises' premises, to mark a Royal marriage or other special personal occasion."

It adds: "When gifts are accepted, the consent of the Member of The Royal Family should be contingent upon the enterprise undertaking not to exploit the gift for commercial purposes."

All presents accepted by members of the Royal Family are logged on a strict record.