Girl power has been personified in Estonia as they head towards a government run by a woman President and Prime Minister. Along with that half the cabinet will be female dominated.
A new two-party coalition government was sworn in 26th January, 2021 in Estonia, led by the first woman Prime Minister since the Baltic nation regained independence in 1991.
Prime Minister Kaja Kallas with her 15-person cabinet took office after lawmakers in Estonia’s parliament endorsed the government appointed by President Kersti Kaljulaid. Kallas, 43, is a lawyer and former European Parliament member.
The center-right Reform Party that she chairs and and the left-leaning Center Party, which are Estonia’s two biggest political parties, reached an agreement to form a government. The previous Cabinet, with Center leader Juri Ratas as prime minister, collapsed this month due to a corruption scandal.
Kallas focused on gender balance in forming the new Cabinet, placing many women in central positions such as the Reform Party’s Keit Pentus-Rosimannus is appointed as finance minister and Eva-Maria Liimets, Estonia’s ambassador to the Czech Republic, as the foreign minister.
Kallas’ Cabinet has a little over two years to make a difference in the European Union and NATO member before the next general election set for March 2023.
One of the government’s urgent priorities is to combat Estonia’s aggravating coronavirus situation and the economic devastation induced by the pandemic.
Estonia, a nation of 1.3 million, is now one of the few countries in the world where both the head of state and the head of government are women. This news comes in line with Kamala Harris being appointed as the first woman Vice President of the U.S.A. “The future is female” seems to be a bright opening in the era of women liberation.
Kallas, a former lawyer and MEP, is the daughter of Sim Kallas, who established the Reform Party and was prime minister in 2002-2003. According to the Guardian, she stressed that gender balance was an important factor in the new cabinet, with numerous women appointed to key positions, including the finance and foreign ministers.
Invest in Estonia reported that the other three countries with a female head of state and head of government are New Zealand, Denmark, and Barbados, all with a queen and a female prime minister.
