President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) was listed No. 15 in Forbes magazine’s World’s 100 Most Powerful Women on Wednesday.
For the second time, Tsai was named among the top 20 on the list, moving up from 17th last year.
Noting that Tsai is the first female leader of Taiwan, the magazine said she shattered precedent by speaking directly to then-US president-elect Donald Trump last year, making her the first Taiwanese president to speak to a US president since 1979.
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“At home, she has implemented a five-industry plan to stimulate the economy, focusing on biotech, pharmaceuticals, national defense, ‘smart’ machinery, ‘green’ energy and the Internet of Things,” Forbes said. “The plan seems to be paying off. As of July, trade with China is up.”
Topping the list for the seventh consecutive year was German Chancellor Angela Merkel, followed by British Prime Minister Theresa May, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation cochair Melinda Gates, and Facebook chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg.
At No. 19 was newcomer Ivanka Trump, who Forbes said was a key player in the US White House and the de facto first lady, given her stepmother Melania Trump’s decision to avoid the limelight.
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