TORONTO -- If you look at the countries and Canadian provinces that have best managed the COVID-19 pandemic, one common factor jumps out: more often than not, their response seems to include a prominent female leader.
This includes Canada鈥檚 Chief Medical Officer Dr. Theresa Tam and the top doctors for seven of the 13 provinces and territories, including some of most successful provinces when it comes to flattening the COVID-19 curve.
鈥淚鈥檓 particularly impressed and pleased to see Dr. Tam and the leadership that she has been providing nationally for all of us,鈥 Paulette Senior, president and CEO of the Canadian Women鈥檚 Foundation, told NewsNight by 麻豆影视, available on the streaming app Quibi.
鈥淪he鈥檚 been a calm steady ship throughout this pandemic.鈥
British Columbia was among the first provinces to have any cases of the virus, but under Chief Medical Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry鈥檚 leadership, the province has until recently shown a steady decline in cases, where they are currently averaging about 30 new cases per day.
Meanwhile, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and the Northwest Territories have not seen any new cases in more than a week under the lead of Dr. Jennifer Russell, Dr. Heather Morrison and Dr. Kami Kandola, respectively.
In Newfoundland and Labrador, Dr. Janice Fitzgerald has only had to report two new cases of the virus in the past 10 days.
In Alberta, the province鈥檚 top doctor Dr. Deena Hinshaw has been a steady hand during her daily press briefings, even choosing to conduct one of them from home when she felt sick and waited for test results.
Senior said it鈥檚 鈥渘ot at all surprising鈥 to see these women perform so successfully while in the spotlight.
鈥淲omen are always good leaders, no matter the state that they鈥檙e dealing with,鈥 she said. 鈥淚n times of crisis, the leadership that they bring is indicative of how they lead. It鈥檚 really about listening, being collaborative, being non-partisan, being informed in terms of decisions that they make.鈥
Andrea Gunraj, vice president of Public Engagement at the Canadian Women's Foundation, told CTV Morning Live in Saskatoon that there are several qualities that tend to shine through more with women that lend themselves to effective leadership in these times.
鈥淲e know women鈥檚 leadership tends to be more inclusive, tends to listen to lots of different diverse perspectives, tends to focus less on partisanship and focus more on where are the best practises and you can tell how important that is right now,鈥 she said.
It should be noted that the Northwest Territories has the only female premier in Canada, while Ontario, Quebec, the Yukon and the Northwest Territories have the only female health ministers.
Senior hopes that seeing the other women in prominent roles leads to an increase in opportunities for women to lead in the future.
鈥淭here should be no question coming out of this pandemic that women鈥檚 leadership matters and is important and that we play a critical role in the world,鈥 she said. 鈥淲ithout us, the world loses out on the skills and the experience and the approach and the values that we bring.鈥
WOMEN ON THE GLOBAL STAGE
The effectiveness of women handling this virus is also reflected on the international stage.
In Germany, Chancellor Angela Merkel has been active from the outset in working to tame COVID-19, which she previously called the country鈥檚 鈥済reatest challenge鈥 since the Second World War.
The country has been able to conduct extensive testing and has an ample supply of intensive care facilities, which is part of the reason they currently have recorded 6,050 deaths, far fewer than other European countries such as Italy (26,977), Spain (23,521), France (23,293) and the United Kingdom (21,092), according to a tally from Johns Hopkins University.
鈥淚t鈥檚 making me proud to see women like Angela Merkel in Germany and they that she -- from the get go -- made sure that her citizens were kept safe and that she put appropriate measures in place,鈥 Senior said.
Additionally, New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern began introducing a strict lockdown when the country had less than 150 cases of the virus. The country has recorded just 19 deaths as of Monday evening.
In Taiwan, President Tsai Ing-wen acted so swiftly with enhanced hygiene and public disinfecting measures that a lockdown was never needed in the country. With just six deaths, the country has begun shipping essential equipment to other nations in need.
For Senior, these women have one thing in common that some of the male counterparts do not: they focused on health before the economy.
鈥淚f the priority is on the economy only, and not the safety of your citizens, that part is going to drive the actions that you take,鈥 she said.
BEHIND-THE-SCENES LEADERSHIP
Gunraj added that while those on TV each day are getting a lot of the spotlight, there are plenty of female leaders behind the scenes who should also be acknowledged.
鈥淚 think there鈥檚 so much hidden leadership happening right now; women are cleaners, women tend to be people who are nurses, women tend to be in childcare roles, in grocery store roles,鈥 she said.
鈥淭hey鈥檙e all on the front lines right now, whether it be on TV or whether it be in these more hidden roles.鈥
With files from The Canadian Press
