Congratulations to Brazil on the inauguration of Dilma Rousseff (right), its first female president, whose election promises include tackling poverty, promoting gender equality and supporting freedom of press and religion.

We at AWARE congratulate her and celebrate some of our favourite female leaders who have contributed towards the betterment of their countries and the world.

• Angela Merkel, chancellor of Germany, and arguably the EU’s strongest leader, calls for the placement of more immigrants in the country’s civil service, deploring discrimination in employment.

• Hillary Rodham Clinton, United States Secretary of State, may have lost the presidential race, but she has won multiple awards internationally for her dedication to activities encompassing health, women and children. The American Ambassador to Singapore, David I Adelman, is working closely with AWARE on The Because I Love Her Project, where men stand up and speak out about violence against women.

• Rania Al Abdullah, Queen of Jordan, is dedicated to making quality education accessible, encouraging efforts in classroom quality, computer access and community investment.

• Mary McAleese, president of the Republic of Ireland and currently the longest-serving female president is the world. Although leading the country at a very difficult time, she is passionate about improving relations between the country’s Catholics and Protestants.

• Aung San Suu Kyi, Nobel Laureate and Burmese pro-democracy leader, has continued to fight for reform in Myanmar despite being under unlawful house arrest for most of that time. AWARE salutes her, and supports her continuing fight for her country’s freedom, now that she has attained her own.

– Tania De Rozario