Duchess Sophie Joins Patients in Joyful Dance on Final Day of Zambia Tour

The Duchess of Edinburgh ended her five-day tour of Zambia on an emotional high, joining patients in a joyful dance after hearing how treatment had restored their sight and transformed their lives.

At Mukuni Rural Health Centre near Livingstone, Sophie danced alongside Zambians who had been treated for trachoma, a painful eye disease that can cause permanent sight loss if left untreated. As the group celebrated, patients chanted in their local language: “We are happy because now we can see.”

The moment brought a fitting conclusion to a visit that has placed eye health, alongside gender equality, education and conservation, at the centre of Sophie’s programme in Zambia.

A celebration of restored sight

The dancing followed deeply personal accounts from six people who had experienced trachoma.

The disease can cause the eyelashes to turn inward, repeatedly scratching and irritating the eye and eventually leading to permanent loss of sight. For those who received treatment, however, surgery has offered the chance to return to everyday activities that had once become difficult or impossible.

Among those who shared their experience with Sophie was Samson Mwiya, who travelled from his farm to Mukuni Rural Health Centre.

Samson said his eyes had constantly itched and felt as though there was mud in them. A clinic volunteer eventually encouraged him to seek treatment.

He also recalled seeing his sister, Alice, emerge from her own operation with her eyes covered in bandages. Despite his fear, he decided to undergo the procedure himself.

“When they removed the bandages from my eyes it was like they were still closed,” he said. “But after the fourth week, my eyes were clear. The mud had gone.”

Sophie later joined Alice Muchembele and other patients in the celebratory dance, visibly sharing in their happiness.

The Duchess has a longstanding interest in preventing avoidable sight loss. She has spoken about her personal connection to eye health after helping her daughter, Lady Louise Windsor, now 22, overcome vision problems when she was younger.

Sophie is also Global Ambassador for the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness and has previously visited eye-health programmes in countries including Ethiopia, Bangladesh and India.

“It’s the worst condition to have”

Another patient, Priscah Mwanaseluka, told Sophie how trachoma had affected almost every part of her life.

With her six-month-old baby beside her, Priscah explained that she had struggled to understand why her eyesight was deteriorating to the point that she could no longer attend school, complete household chores or work in the fields.

She said the operation changed her life.

“Afterwards, I was able to get married and have two children,” she told Sophie.

The Duchess expressed her sympathy after hearing the patients’ experiences.

“It’s the worst condition to have,” Sophie said, comparing the pain of trachoma with the familiar discomfort of having a single eyelash trapped in the eye.

“We all know what it’s like just to get one eyelash in your eye, and it’s horrible. To have all your eyelashes do that [is unimaginable].”

The work in Zambia is supported by British charity Sightsavers, which is working alongside the Zambian government to eliminate trachoma as a public health problem. Sightsavers has also worked on programmes across Africa to expand access to eye care and treatment for people affected by trachoma and other eye conditions.

From eye health to women’s rights

Sophie’s final day in Zambia continued with a visit to Libuyu Primary School, where she heard about the work of WISH — Women’s Integrated Sexual Health.

The organisation works to improve women’s lives by providing access to high-quality family planning and reproductive health services, while also addressing attitudes towards gender-based violence.

Her final engagement took her to the Wayi Wayi Art Centre in Livingstone Central, where she met artists Lawrence Yombwe and his wife, Agness Buya Yombwe.

The couple, who studied in Britain before establishing their studio and workshop in Livingstone, showed Sophie a distinctive ceramic vessel known as a “dialogue dynamic” pot.

The unusual piece has two spouts. It is designed so that one person can speak through one spout, but the vessel stops functioning properly when two people try to speak at the same time.

The artists explained that the design serves as an allegory for couples who talk over one another.

Sophie appeared amused by the idea.

“Actually, I think my husband might want one of these,” she said.

The couple’s wider body of work explores social issues including gender relations, mutual respect and the prevention of domestic violence.

An emotional end to the royal tour

The final day brought together many of the themes Sophie had explored throughout her five-day visit, from preventing avoidable blindness to supporting women and encouraging conversations around social issues.

The Duchess arrived in Zambia on September 14 and departed on September 19, with the tour highlighting the longstanding relationship between Zambia and the UK as well as shared priorities including gender equality, climate and nature, education and research.

After a packed series of engagements, Sophie showed little sign of fatigue. She climbed into her four-wheel-drive vehicle, waved goodbye and disappeared along the dusty, unmetalled road — bringing her Zambia tour to an end after five days of meetings, personal stories and moments of celebration.