The Duchess of Sussex has hit out at the treatment by “those in the corridors of power” in her first speech since quitting her role in the royal family.

In a pre-recorded nine-minute video, Meghan encouraged women to “fight against injustice” as she spoke to the Girl Up 2020 Leadership Summit, as part of a session called “The Time Is Now”.

Speaking from her Los Angeles home, Meghan, 38, spoke up about the struggles to “challenge” those in power to fight important issues.

She said: “I want to share something with you.

“It’s that those in the halls and corridors and places of power, from lawmakers and world leaders to executives, all of those people, they depend on you more than you will ever depend on them.

“And here’s the thing: they know this.

“They know that all of you, at a younger age than any modern comparison, are setting the tone for an equitable humanity. Not figuratively, literally.

“This is a humanity that desperately needs you.

“To push it, to push us, forcefully in a more inclusive, more just, and more empathetic direction.

“To not only frame the debate, but be in charge of the debate—on racial justice, gender, climate change, mental health and wellbeing, on civic engagement, on public service, on so much more.

“That’s the work you’re already out there doing.”

Meghan’s address was the final speech of the day. Michelle Obama was also one of the speakers at the virtual meeting attended by nearly 40,000 people aged 13 to 22 across 172 countries.

Meghan also talked about the need to “drown out the noise” of negative voices and speak out “even when it makes others feel uneasy”.

She said : “Your gut will tell you what’s right and wrong. What’s fair and unfair. The hardest part — and it was the hardest part for me — is to chase your convictions with action.

“You look at the breadth of the issues we‘re facing right now, it is easy to get overwhelmed. I understand.

“Be where you are in the moment. The growth and the change that you‘re pursuing might not feel like anything day-to-day.

“But when you look back, I promise, you will see that it all adds up.”

She continued: “There will always be negative voices and sometimes those voices can appear to be outsized, and sometimes they can appear to be painfully loud.

“You can and will use your own voices to drown out the noise. Because that’s what it is — just noise.

“But your voices are those of truth. And hope. And your voices can and should be much louder.”