Female leadership in the global COVID-19 pandemic
There’s a common thread of female leadership tying pandemic victories together
Female leaders are powerful. Their ferocity is coupled with empathy, caution, and quick-thinking. Now, I’m not saying this because I’m a woman. I am saying this because I see it. In fact, right now, we’re all seeing it.
This unprecedented global pandemic has changed the course of modern civilisation. For the first time, in decades, international borders have been closed, citizens have been locked indoors, schools have been shut down, and the uncertainty has been creating havoc.
With day-to-day operations in most countries coming to a standstill, some others played the game very differently. In recent news, countries such as Germany, New Zealand, and Finland are set to ease lockdown restrictions and resume economic and social activities. Closer to home, Kerala, a populous state in South India, has managed to tightly control its COVID numbers.
Experts were quick enough to pick up on a common thread among these victories. Leadership. More specifically, female leadership. Female leaders of these countries spearheaded the war against coronavirus, and did so quickly, while exercising caution and empathy. Read that sentence once again. That is exactly what differentiates male and female leadership.
Let’s talk about four amazing leaders (out of many more!) — KK Shailaja, Jacinda Ardern, Angela Merkel, and Tsai Ing-wen — and what made them even more amazing during this pandemic.
KK Shailaja: quick and empathetic.
When did you start taking the coronavirus seriously? I’m certain it wasn’t on January 24th, 2020. KK Shailaja, a former teacher and now Health Minister of Kerala, was leaps ahead of the rest of the world. As soon as she was told that the virus, then pervasive in China, could reach India, she set Kerala into motion. The state’s emergency response team immediately adopted the WHO’s protocol of test, trace, isolate, and support (Spinney).
When the rest of the country was playing Holi, going to work, indifferent to COVID, Kerala locked its residents down. When the rest of the world was oblivious to the extent of damage the virus could cause, Kerala had already begun mass testing. And thus, by the time the rest of the country was panicking, Kerala was flattening the curve. The fact that a state of 35 million people reported only 4 deaths speaks to KK Shailaja’s excellence (Spinney).
She acted fast. Faster than the rest of India. Faster than the rest of the world. In fact, extensive research has proven that women are naturally more likely to identify the seriousness of a problem and take action (Huston). This was reflected in the preparedness that she exercised to bring most of Kerala out unscathed. She got the populous state to comply with lockdown regulations by working with officials to home-deliver essentials to ensure social distancing and avoid any violations (Kurian).
Jacinda Ardern: cautious and approachable.
Yes, leaders addressed their countries with lockdown rules and updates. But Jacinda Ardern, decked in sweats addressed her people donned in #WFH clothing. Through her appeals of kindness, filled with sound reasoning and charisma, Ardern established her approachability. In turn, she managed to convince her people of the seriousness of the lockdown, and that she was with them through the process. Upfront and honest, she said, “Stay at home and save lives.” (Wilson) In doing all of this, Ardern managed to narrow the gap between the government and its people. This united New Zealand like never before.
Although New Zealand issued their official lockdown on March 25th, 2020, Ardern’s leadership was instrumental in shaping how the people responded to the lockdown. She declared a state of emergency, increased emergency spending, and educated her people as much as she could. Consequently, as of June 4th, New Zealand is on track to completely eliminate COVID-19 and ease almost all social distancing norms (Wilson). Given the chance, women really do change the world!
Angela Merkel: innovative and honest.
The world is looking up to German Chancellor Angela Merkel. Insistent on monitoring epidemiological data, Merkel always wanted to stay one step ahead. She kept track of what Germany’s neighbours were facing. Considering Germany is part of the EU, geographically most likely to expect an explosion of cases from Italy and Spain, it did much better than any of us could imagine (Henley and Roy).
Merkel’s plan of action was clear. Coupled with rapid mass-testing and a strong healthcare system, Merkel clearly communicated the risk of the virus to her people (Henley and Roy). She blatantly put forth the reality of the situation to her people — if you don’t follow the protocol, people will die. Her speeches really exuded pathos. Rather innovatively, she integrated strict travel restrictions, lockdown rules, and good healthcare, to curb Germany at about 8000 deaths, one of the much better situations in the EU.
Tsai Ing-wen: quick and kind.
Like Kerala, Taiwan, led by this incredible woman, introduced quarantine, lockdowns and travel regulations in January, when China was the only majorly affected country. Owing to its close proximity to China, one would have expected otherwise but as of today, reported only 7 deaths. In fact, Ing-wen has encouraged Taiwan to provide emergency equipment to most other parts of the world (Henley and Roy).
It is, indeed, incredible. Female leaders have been given far less credit for far too long. In times of a real crisis, they rose to the occasion, took bold steps, and while staying true to their personalities, protected millions in their countries from losing to the novel coronavirus.
Reading about female leaders is exciting. Seeing them change the world is empowering. As a young female, seeing women in positions of power is a massive source of inspiration. It makes me believe in myself, and in my ability to make a difference. None of this is to say that male leadership is inefficient. Instead, it aims to bring attention to how different female leadership is. And in this crisis, it has proved to be extremely effective.
To what do we attribute this difference? It comes down to the nature versus nurture debate. For years, experts have tried to prove that biologically women are more empathetic, kind, and cautious. However, it is impossible to prove this because socialization has, in fact, conditioned women to be all those things. Owing to discrimination, multitasking home and work (even today), and being considered the inferior sex has subconsciously made it the social convention that women are kinder than their male counterparts. It’s important to acknowledge these difference and consider where they come from. And it is imperative to remember that none of this changes the strength, courage, and tenacity of a female leader.
Certainly, we cannot attribute a country’s victory over the coronavirus without considering confounding variables like its population and its healthcare system. Nonetheless, the way that a leader controls a situation, making the most of her country’s resources, speaks volumes about her abilities.
These leaders could think big; they wanted to eliminate the virus. And they are almost there, leading by example.
References
Henley, Jon, and Eleanor Ainge Roy. “Are Female Leaders More Successful at Managing the Coronavirus Crisis?” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 25 Apr. 2020, www.theguardian.com/world/2020/apr/25/why-do-female-leaders-seem-to-be-more-successful-at-managing-the-coronavirus-crisis.
Kurian, Oommen C. “How the Indian State of Kerala Flattened the Coronavirus Curve | Oommen C Kurian.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 21 Apr. 2020, www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/apr/21/kerala-indian-state-flattened-coronavirus-curve.
Spinney, Laura. “The Coronavirus Slayer! How Kerala’s Rock Star Health Minister Helped Save It from Covid-19.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 14 May 2020, www.theguardian.com/world/2020/may/14/the-coronavirus-slayer-how-keralas-rock-star-health-minister-helped-save-it-from-covid-19#maincontent.
Wilson, Suze. “New Zealand PM Jacinda Ardern’s Covid-19 Response Is a Lesson for Other World Leaders.” Scroll.in, Scroll.in, 7 Apr. 2020, scroll.in/article/958373/new-zealand-pm-jacinda-arderns-covid-19-response-is-a-lesson-for-other-world-leaders.
WRITTEN BY,
Natasha Raut
Campus Ambassador at
Aspire For Her
