Jacinda Ardern has ranked second in Fortune Magazine’s list of the world’s greatest leaders.
The multinational business magazine regularly reports ranked lists, including the annual World’s 50 Greatest Leaders – described as the “thinkers, speakers, and doers who are stepping up to meet today’s challenges”.
Last week, the magazine published the list, with New Zealand’s Prime Minister coming in as the world’s second greatest leader.
“Jacinda Ardern had already broken new ground as a pregnant woman – and then a new mother – leading a nation. And this year, the 38-year-old Prime Minister showed the world her fullness as a leader as she deftly, empathetically, and humbly navigated New Zealand through the worst terror attack in its history, after 50 were killed at two mosques in Christchurch in March,” the magazine reported.
“Rallying people behind the theme ‘We are one,’ she channelled the country’s – and Muslim community’s – grief as she opened speeches with Arabic greetings and quietly wore a head scarf. She set a standard for dignity in the face of violence by refusing to speak the attacker’s name. And she won near-unanimous support for a ban on semiautomatic weapons of the kind used in the attack. Future leaders can look to Ardern for a master class in how to guide a country through a crisis,” it said.
Bill and Melinda Gates were ranked number one in the list for their work in fighting health crises around the world.
Prince Harry and Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, came in at number 42 for using the global stage to “promote causes that might be considered taboo even in non-royal households”.
Jacinda Ardern was also named in Time Magazine’s most influential people list.
A hundred people were listed, including artists, pioneers and icons.
Ms Ardern was featured alongside Pope Francis and US President Donald Trump.
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