American business magazine Forbes on Monday ranked Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina as the 36th most powerful woman in the world, 23 places up from the last year. Hasina was ranked 59th last year.

 

The magazine published its 2016 ranking on The World’s 100 Most Powerful Women on Monday.

 

German Chancellor Angela Merkel retained the top spot while US presidential candidate Hillary Clinton and chair of the US Federal Reserve Janet Yellen took second and third position respectively.

 

The survey features 100 women from 29 countries who represent sectors such as politics, business, technology and philanthropy.

 

There are 32 chief executives on the list, 12 world leaders and 11 billionaires, including nine who have built billion-dollar companies from scratch. The average age is 57, with Yahoo chief executive Marissa Mayer, being the youngest at 41 and Britain's Queen Elizabeth II the oldest at 90.

 

‘Sheikh Hasina Wajed has command over a country with the world’s eighth largest population — 162 million people — and she has wielded this power since 2009,’ Forbes said of Hasina.

 

In March this year, business magazine Fortune named Hasina as one of the greatest leaders of the world. The prime minister ranked 10th among 50 leaders who "are transforming the world and inspiring others to do the same," the internationally acclaimed magazine said.