Sheikh Hasina is a Bangladeshi politician who has served as the Prime Minister of Bangladesh since January 2009. She is the daughter of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the founding father and first president of Bangladesh.
Hasina was born on September 28, 1947, in Tungipara, East Bengal (now Bangladesh). She attended primary school in her village and later studied at Azimpur Girls’ School and Begum Badrunnesa Girls’ College in Dhaka.
In 1968, Hasina married M.A. Wazed Miah, an eminent Bengali scientist. She became active in politics while at the University of Dhaka in the late 1960s, serving as her father’s political liaison during his imprisonment by the Pakistani government.
Hasina was elected president of the Awami League, Bangladesh’s largest political party, in 1981. She returned to Bangladesh in 1981 after spending six years in exile following the assassination of her father and other family members in 1975.
Hasina has served as Prime Minister for a combined total of over 20 years, making her the longest-serving prime minister in Bangladesh’s history. She has been elected four times: in 1996, 2008, 2014, and 2018.
During her tenure, Bangladesh has experienced economic growth and a reduction in poverty. However, her government has also been criticized for democratic backsliding, with reports of enforced disappearances, extrajudicial killings, and restrictions on press freedom.
Hasina has received numerous awards and honors, including the UNESCO Houphouët-Boigny Peace Prize in 1998, the UN Award for MDG Achievement in 2010, and the Champions of the Earth Award in 2015.