Mixing with royalty! Sasha and Malia touch down with their mom in Marrakesh to meet Princess Lalla Selma on tour of Africa

Michelle Obama and her daughters touched down in Morocco on the next leg of their six-day trip to promote education in Africa on Monday evening, where they were welcomed by King Mohammed VI's wife Princess Lalla Selma at the airport.

The first lady and her family landed at Menara Airport in Marrakesh after spending the day at a leadership camp for girls in Liberia, where she urged the teens in one of the world's poorest countries to keep fighting to stay in school. 

With her own teenage daughters Malia and Sasha joining her, Obama told the girls she was 'just so thrilled to be here with you.'

'I'm here to shine a big bright light on you,' she said.

Education for girls is the central theme of the first lady's six-day trip, which also includes a stop in Spain after Morocco. 

Mrs Obama, who is traveling with her mother Marian Robinson and her daughters Malia, 17, who recently graduated from high school, and Sasha, 15, was welcomed on her arrival in Liberia with a red carpet and traditional dancers. 

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Malia (left) and Sasha Obama touched down in Marrakesh with their mother and met Princess Lalla Selma (right) on Monday 

The Obamas were welcomed by King Mohammed VI's wife Princess Lalla Selma (center right) at Menara Airport in Marrakesh

Michelle Obama and her daughters touched down in Morocco for the second stop of her six-day trip to promote education

In connection with the first lady's visit, USAID announced up to $27 million in funding in Liberia programming for Let Girls Learn, an initiative launched by Mrs. Obama and President Barack Obama last year. 

She has since traveled the globe to call for greater support for the millions of girls kept away from school or forced to abandon their studies. 

Liberia was battered by civil wars between 1989 and 2003. Ebola swept the country in 2014, killing more than 4,800. Schools were closed for months.

The country was founded as part of an effort to resettle freed American slaves and has deep ties to the United States. The country's oldest vocational high school, located in Kakata, is named for African-American civil rights activist Booker T. Washington.

The school suspended mid-term exams scheduled to start Monday 'to allow the students to give Mrs. Obama a rousing welcome to appreciate what the United States has done for us,' principal Harris Tarnue said.

'She will be a real inspiration to the young girls around here,' he said.

Mrs. Obama met girls and young women at a project named GLOW (Girls Leading Our World) aimed at boosting active citizenship, run by the US Peace Corps in Kakata, east of the coastal capital.

Dirst lady Michelle Obama is welcomed by the Moroccan Princess Lalla Salma at the Marrakech International Airport

Mrs Obama is on a two-day visit to Morocco to promote education for girls as part of Let Girls Learn, an initiative launched by Mrs. Obama and President Barack Obama last year

 Morocco's King Mohammed VI wife Princess Lalla Selma donned a bright orange dress while Mrs Obama wore simple florals 

Speaking about the value of women's leadership and access to education, the Harvard-trained lawyer told the girls: 'I want you to keep fighting and stay in school.'

Her venture has particular poignance in Liberia, where just 37 percent of 15 to 24-year-old girls are literate, according to UN figures, and enrolment at the secondary level hovers close to 40 percent, with real participation much lower.

She was also due to visit a school in Unification Town, further inland.

The school stop would see the First Lady hold a discussion with adolescent girls 'who have faced serious obstacles in attaining an education,' according to a White House statement. 

Earlier, she was welcomed to Liberia's capital with a red carpet and traditional dancers wearing the red, white and blue colors of both countries' flags.

After meeting Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Mrs. Obama traveled 70 kilometers (43 miles) along a heavily potholed road to Kakata.   

U.S. first lady Michelle Obama walks with her daughters Sasha and Malia, together with Michelle's mother Marian Robinson (right), as she arrives at the Robert International airport near Harbel, Liberia

The first lady is traveling with her mother and daughters Malia, 18, who recently graduated from high school, and Sasha, 15. Education for girls is the central theme of the first lady's trip, which also includes stops in Morocco and Spain

Michelle Obama (left) listens to Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf (right) after arriving at the airport in Monrovia, Liberia

The recent Ebola outbreak in Liberia created even more challenges for girls' education in the West African country, where just one-third of girls are enrolled in secondary education. 

Liberia ranked second only to South Sudan in the share of primary school-age girls who aren't enrolled in school, a global report by UNESCO said earlier this year.

Actress Meryl Streep will accompany Mrs. Obama in Marrakech, Morocco, on Tuesday for another conversation with adolescent girls. 

The North African country's rates for girls' education are well below regional averages, U.S. officials told reporters Friday, with a high dropout rate for girls after primary school.

In Madrid, the first lady on Thursday will speak about the Let Girls Learn initiative, launched by her and President Barack Obama last year to encourage developing nations to educate the more than 62million girls worldwide who don't attend school.

President Obama is also scheduled to visit Spain shortly after the first lady. His trip will focus on security cooperation, deputy national security adviser Ben Rhodes told reporters Friday.

Mrs. Obama's previous visits to Africa as first lady have included Ghana, South Africa, Botswana, Senegal and Tanzania. 

She was also welcomed by Peace Corp teachers and students at a project 43 miles from the capital city Monrovia in Kakata, Liberia

The visit to the school was the first stop on her trip to the country that was ravaged by the Ebola crisis 

She is seen interacting with a group of Peace Corp members during the start of her trip