The World's Richest Women 2014

It was a record-breaking year for women on the FORBES list of the World Billionaires. Out of 1,645 billionaires, a record 172 are women – up from 138 last year. There’s no denying that women are still a tiny minority on the list, representing a little over 10% of the total.

At the top, Christy Walton reclaims her spot as the richest woman with a $36.7 billion fortune. The widow of John Walton has had that title for four out of the last five years. She has boosted her fortune above the rest of the Walton family members through her ownership of First Solar FSLR -1.87%shares. That stock rose nearly 50% in the past year.

Back in second place after a year at the top: Liliane Bettencourt, worth $34.5 billion. The L’Oreal heiress remains France’s richest person. Her fortune increased this year thanks to the company’s stock surging. She is 91, and it’s been years since she’s been involved in running the company.

The third richest woman is another Walton family member – Alice Walton($34.3 billion). The daughter of visionary retailer Sam Walton is Christy’s sister-in-law. She opened her Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, Arkansas in 2011. It features works from her personal collection.

Billionaires 2014: The World's Richest Women

It's a record year for women on the Forbes billionaires list.

Notably, of the 268 newcomers to the ranks, 42 are women. However, only five of them built their own fortunes as opposed to inheriting them from their parents or husbands. These five remarkable women include Sheryl Sandberg($1.05 billion), who leaned into a COO position at Facebook and 12 million or so shares in the company. With the social networking firm’s share price up more than 130% in the past 12 months, she is now one of the world’s youngest self-made women billionaires.

The other newcomer self-made billionaire women include Folorunsho Alakija($2.5 billion), Nigeria’s first female billionaire, whose Famfa Oil owns a prolific oil bloc. There’s UK’s Denise Coates ($1.6 billion), the co-CEO and largest shareholder of online gambling site Bet365; Liu Xiaomeng ($1 billion), who holds a stake in the Suning Appliance Group, which in turn owns 14% of Suning Commerce Group, China’s largest appliance retailer; and Wang Laichun ($1 billion) Chairman of Shenzhen Luxshare Precision Industry Co., Ltd.

Newcomers that came to their fortunes through an inheritance include Sandra Mera Ortega, daughter of the late billionaire Rosalia Mera. Mera, along with then husband and now third-richest person in the world, founded clothing giant Inditex (best known for its Zara brand).

 Finally, in a case involving a very loyal daughter, this year’s youngest billionaire is a woman. Perenna Kei, at only 24 years old, is the controlling owner of Chinese real estate giant Logan Properties. Kei is the daughter of Logan’s chairman and CEO, Ji Haipeng. Company documents indicate that she is the majority shareholder, the settler of the trust and acts “in accordance with Mr. Ji’s directions.” The company went public in December 2013 and its stock rose 2.4% on the first day of trading, making Kei a billionaire.

for details click here

Doing More than A Woman

Malala

Malala Yous afzai, a brilliant and courageous girl student from Pakistan. She is a proud daughter, sister and an associate known for being a children’s rights activist. At the age of 13 years, she championed the cause of the people of Swat by blogging for the BBC under a pseudonym about the atrocities of the Tehrik-e-Taliban and extremists. The international children’s advocacy group Kids Rights Foundation rightly included Yousafzai among the nominees for the International Children’s Peace Prize, making her the first Pakistani girl nominated  for the award. South African Nobel laureate Desmund Tutu announced the nominations during a 2011 cerem ony in Amsterdam, Holland, but Yousafzai did not w in the prize but made a mark and now this is the right time that she should be given noble peace prize and her immense struggle and contribution must be appreciated and acknowledged.

 

 Very few  people know that Yousafzai who lives in Mingora, Swat Pakistan as occupied by the Taliban from March 2009 until May 2009, has become an icon and a celebrity to be reckoned with. She rightly exposed the negative mentality of the extremists when she wrote a diary for the BBC under the pseudonym “Gul Makai”, in which she described the deeds of the extremists in Swat and made a newer history.

For her courageous and outstanding services for the promotion of peace under extremely hostile conditions, she was awarded the first National Peace Award by the Pakistani government on 19 December 2011. Speaking to the media afterwards, she expressed her intent to form a political party focused on education. The Government Girls Secondary School, Mission Road, was immediately renamed Malala Yousufzai Government Girls Secondary School in her honour.

 

 On 9 October 2012, a gunman walked up to a bus taking children home from school in Pakistan’s Swat Valley and shot Malala and the girl who identified her. Malala was shot twice, once in the head and once in the neck, but her wounds were not life-threatening. Ehsanullah Ehsan, the chief spokesman for the Pakistani Taliban, officially claimed responsibility for the attack, saying that she is symbolic of obscenity and has spread negative propaganda. The world has condemned this brutal act by the coward extremists.

This is the story of brave, brilliant and amazing children of Pakistan who are determined to make a difference despite all odds. Let us pay them tribute. They are our real wealth and strategic asset. We all stand for their rights. To know more about malala