AT ONLY 34 years of age, Sanna Marin, who was appointed Finland’s prime minister on December 10th, is the youngest head of government in the world. As well as her youth, her gender also makes her something of a rarity, at least by international standards. She is one of only five women among the European Union’s 28 current leaders. What is more, Ms Marin leads a left-wing coalition whose five parties are all led by women, three of whom are under 35.
To Finns, seeing plenty of women in senior political positions is not unusual. As with other Nordic states, Finland has been at the forefront of gender equality in politics for several years. Forty-seven per cent of its parliamentarians are female, one of the highest shares in the world. Ms Marin is the third woman to become prime minister. In the rest of Europe, women find it harder to reach the top jobs. But more of them are getting there.
Ms Marin knocked two other young politicians off the top of league tables. Ukraine’s Oleksiy Honcharuk, who is 35, was the world’s youngest sitting prime minister . New Zealand’s Jacinta Ardern, aged 39, had been the youngest woman in such an office. You might say Ms Marin timed her run well: Sebastian Kurz, Ms Bierlein’s predecessor in Austria, was ousted in May at only 32, having been elected at 31.
Her youth may give Ms Marin’s party an edge in future elections. She boasts 70,000 followers on Instagram—a decent share of the country’s 5.5m people—where she shares pictures of her toddler, party hustings and the campaign trail. That said, youth didn’t guarantee Mr Kurz his job; and at 70 his replacement, Ms Bierlein, is the EU’s second-oldest head of government. In truth, neither youth nor age need be a barrier in politics.
I think Finland is the best country on earth...if it werent so freaking cold....
Beacon of hope in a dark world.
It is good for fresh female blood to be introduced and to unconditionally believe in our women to lead in front. Our ideal role as men would be to provide leadership experience and support from the back. BelieveInWomenLeadership
Marladukharan So that means they will be the best government ever?
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