Prince Harry has diverted money from his late mother’s memorial fund away from Sentebale, the charity he co-founded almost 20 years ago, and is giving it to Elephants Without Borders instead.
Prince Harry has diverted money from his late mother’s memorial fund away from Sentebale, the charity he co-founded almost 20 years ago.
The Duke of Sussex – who established the organisation with Prince Seeiso of Lesotho to offer support for people in southern African battling HIV and Aids – stepped down from the board of trustees at the non-profit in March 2025 after a row between the trustees and chair Dr. Sophie Chandauka, and it has now emerged that while annual income from the Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fund has gone to Sentebale since 2020, the last payment was given in 2024 and the most recent sum as instead sent to the conservation group Elephants Without Borders.
The Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fund was founded shortly after her death in 1997 and was closed in 2012, with the Royal Foundation assuming legal control the following year to safeguard any future income, which comes from legacies and occasional donations. The bulk of the proceeds went to charities chosen by Harry and his brother Prince William.
When Harry and wife Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, stepped down from royal duties in 2020, the brothers agreed to divide the future proceeds of their mother’s memorial fund between them as part of the separation of their charitable activities.
Harry requested his share go to Sentebale, with annual accounts filed by the Royal Foundation of the Prince and Princess of Wales, showing the organisation received a total of £43,866 from the Diana fund since 2020, with the last payment of £16,743 made in 2024.
The latest accounts showed that in 2025, Harry’s £5,432 instead went to Elephants Without Borders.
Documents obtained by the Telegraph stated: “In accordance with a request by The Duke of Sussex, half of the net proceeds received by the Diana Fund since 18 December 2019 are being donated to a charity of The Duke’s choosing. In 2025 all funds will be donated to Elephants Without Borders.”
The conservation charity – which was founded by Dr. Mike Chase, who has known Harry for over two decades – used the money to fit satellite-tracking collars to two “magnificent” elephants in the Okavango Delta, which have been named Archie and Lili in honour of the prince’s two children.
Dr. Chase told The Telegraph: “The Duke has a very strong passion for the Okavango Delta, Botswana, its people, and its wildlife.
“I am deeply grateful that he is supporting us through the Diana Memorial Fund, it means a great deal to us and to the elephants we are working so hard to protect.
“We wanted to pass on that legacy to the kids, in the hope that his passion for Okavango and Botswana would rub off on them, and to allow them to monitor the elephants in real time across the world.”
Prince Archie, seven, chose a blue collar for his namesake elephant, while Princess Lilibet, five, opted for purple.
Prince Harry diverts Diana memorial fund donations away from Sentebale
