Prince Charles announces Katy Perry as British Asian Trust ambassador
Katy Perry has been named an ambassador for the British Asian Trust by Prince Charles.
The prince, a founder and patron of the charity, announced the appointment at the trust’s annual royal dinner in London on Tuesday evening.
He attended the event alongside the Duchess of Cornwall.
Perry will be an ambassador for the trust’s Children’s Protection Fund for India as part of a major drive against child trafficking. Charles also announced a multimillion-pound pledge by Indian philanthropist Natasha Poonawalla in support of the fund.
Perry said: “My work as a Unicef Goodwill Ambassador has taken me to many parts of the world and opened my eyes to the many vulnerabilities of children.
“India has long held a special place in my heart, and on my last visit, I was able to meet with the Prince of Wales and other leaders in Mumbai, and I was impressed by their strong plan – from on-ground initiatives to fundraising – that will aim to cut child trafficking in half.
“That is why I am especially honoured to be named an ambassador for the British Asian Trust’s Children’s Protection Fund, and to help shine my light on the work that the British Asian Trust will be doing in South Asia, and to be a part of finding solutions to child trafficking.
“Children are vulnerable and innocent and have to be protected.”
The British Asian Trust was founded in 2007 by Prince Charles and a group of British Asian business leaders.
The charity supports the 5.8 million children working in forced labour in India, where tens of thousands are thought to be working in hazardous workshops.
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It works with business, government and civil society to remove child labour from supply chains and bring child labour-free products to markets.
Prince Charles first met Perry in Mumbai, India, in November 2019 at a meeting of British Asian Trust supporters and advisors.
Manoj Badale, chair of the British Asian Trust, said: “We’re delighted to announce Katy Perry as our newest ambassador and are looking forward to working with her on raising awareness of the work we carry out across South Asia.
“Katy is a keen supporter of our work and her appointment marks another successful year for the British Asian Trust.”