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Entity shares the female world leaders who shattered the glass ceiling.

For the first time in Japanese history, women are stepping up to increase female representation in politics. Three women have recently assumed powerful positions within that country’s government.

Tokyo has officially elected its first female governor, Yuriko Koike. Japan’s newest defense minister, Tomomi Inada, is the second woman to hold that title. And Renho Murata has become the first female leader of the opposition Democratic Party in Tokyo. Murata says she hopes to use her position to help get more women elected in Japan’s parliament, where fewer than 15 percent of the positions are occupied by women.

“We don’t have enough women to raise their hands,” Murata told National Public Radio. “It all began for me when I was raising two children. In a society that complains about not having enough children, the government wasn’t offering any support. That made me want to become a politician.”

But as Japan continues to work on shattering its own glass ceiling, other countries have already supported women in power such as Germany where Angela Merkel is Chancellor and the U.K. which has Theresa May as Prime Minister. Here are five other female world leaders you should know.

1 Michelle Bachelet (President of Chile)

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Michelle Bachelet, who is currently on her second term governing Chile, became the first female president of the country in 2006. When she ran for the presidency, Bachelet’s campaign focused on Chile’s poor communities, reforming the pension system, advocating for women’s rights and recognizing the rights of the indigenous Mapuche people. Since coming into office, Bachelet has helped reduce poverty and improve early childhood education programs. 

After leaving office in 2010, she became the head of Chile’s United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women). Then, she got chosen to be a presidential candidate again in 2013. Since returning to office, one of her biggest successes was passing an education-reform bill that helps make public higher education free for the poorest 70 percent of Chilean citizens.

And to serve as another testament of her accomplishments, Bachelet also ranked No. 18 on Forbes’ 2016 list of the World’s 100 Most Powerful Women.  

READ MORE: 5 Members of Hillary’s Future #GirlSquad

2 Sheikh Hasina Wazed (Prime Minister of Bangladesh)

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Sheikh Hasina Wazed, who ranked No. 36 on Forbes’ 2016 list of Powerful Women, has led the world’s eighth largest population for two terms. Her first term as the second female Prime Minister of Bangladesh was from 1996 to 2001. She then began her second term eight years later in 2009.

As Prime Minister, she has been credited for pushing the country towards democracy. In addition to that, Wazed also spearheaded the Chittagong Hill Tracts Peace Accord, signed in 1997. This treaty was signed between the Bangladeshi government and the Parbatya Chattagram Jana Sanghati Samiti (United People’s Party of the Chittagong Hill Tracts), the political organization that had a powerful military power. The peace agreement helped end decades of violence and hostility between the Bangladeshi government and the various tribes in the country.

3 Ellen Johnson Sirleaf (President of Liberia)

When Ellen Johnson Sirleaf was sworn in 2006, she not only became the first woman to be president in Africa, she also became the world’s first elected black female president. As president, Sirleaf has worked to impose her “zero tolerance” policy on corruption within the government, starting by establishing the Liberian Anti-Corruption Commission and restructuring the General Auditing Commission.

Sirleaf has also done notable work for women in politics by appointing many women to high-level positions in her administration. She’s  hired female ministers to lead the Finance, Law Commerce and Industry ministry, the Gender and Development ministry and the Youth and Sports ministry. In 2006, she received the Nobel Peace Prize for her “non-violent struggle for the safety of women and for women’s rights to full participation in peace-building work.”

READ MORE: UK Prime Minister Theresa May is the ‘Ice Maiden’

4 Dalia Grybauskaite (President of Lithuania)

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Dalia Grybauskaite became the first female president of Lithuania in 2009. Since taking office, she’s used her extensive background in finance to help boost the country’s economy. Before taking on the role as president, Grybauskaite served as the deputy finance minister in Vilnius and worked as Lithuania’s chief negotiator with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank.

As president, Grybauskaite has tried to bolster the economy by stimulating exports, cutting public expenditures and offering tax relief to small business owners. Although the Lithuanian economy still has a long way to go, the Lithuanian economy started showing signs of recovery in 2011.

Grybauskaite has also earned a reputation as Lithuania’s “Iron Lady” or “Steel Magnolia” for her toughness and blunt attitude.

5 Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca (President of Malta)

Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca is Malta’s second female president and the youngest person to assume office in the country. When she became president at 55 in 2014, it was the first time in the history of the Maltese parliament that her nomination was unanimously approved by the House of Representatives.

Soon after taking office, Coleiro Preca has worked to foster unity among the Maltese people. For one, she formed The President’s Foundation for the Wellbeing of Society, an non-profit organization aimed at enhancing human relationships and social well-being. She also established the Children’s Hub, which provides a safe and creative space for children to freely express their personality and opinions.

Overall, Coleiro Preca has dedicated her life and career on improving the social status and well-being of those who are most vulnerable in society, especially the lower class. Aside from the different foundations she’s established, she also launched the Green Paper: Structure for Poverty Reduction and Social Inclusion in 2014 with the Prime Minister of Malta, Dr. Joseph Muscat. Currently, over 22,000 children benefit from the child supplement introduced to combat poverty and social exclusion.

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