Janet Jagan

Janet Rosenberg Jagan was an American-born Guyanese politician who served as the 6th President of Guyana from 1997 to 1999. She was the first female president of Guyana, and the first American-born woman to serve as a head of state. She previously served as the first female Prime Minister of Guyana from 17 March 1997 to 19 December 1997. The wife of Cheddi Jagan, whom she succeeded as president, she was awarded Guyana's highest national award, the Order of Excellence, in 1993, and the UNESCO Mahatma Gandhi Gold Medal for Women's Rights in 1998.