Nigeria’s first centre offering care and support to survivors of sexual assault has named a British royal as a patron.

The Duchess of Cornwall says she is “delighted” to take up the role and praised the Mirabel Centre’s “vital work”.

Founded in 2013, the facility in Lagos says it has given free medical and psychosocial support services to more than 6,450 people.

Mirabel Centre founder Itoro Eze- Anaba said in press statement that their services were more in demand than ever, because the pandemic had “further revealed the endemic nature of sexual violence”.

“Our youngest survivor is a 3-month-old baby and the oldest, an 80-year-old woman,” she added, saying she was confident the duchess’s support would “make a difference”.