f a t V 1 a w P r r P P e N 5 the WORlD’S most powerful PeOPle Every year, Forbes magazine releases its list of the world’s most powerful people. Here are some surprising facts about the top five. WORDS Victoria tait t h h s c V P N a E S V r e c Donald trump
there is close to 7.4 billion humans on the planet yet Forbes magazine has named only 74 people as the world’s most powerful. the list has a mix of the old world meets new and shows in the popularity stats that conservativism is close to modernism, with Donald trump coming in second and Pope Francis following firmly behind in fifth. VlaDimiR Putin President of russia Net Worth: USD$200 billion age: 64 Education: Doctor of Jurisprudence, Saint Petersburg State University Vladimir Putin is the world’s most powerful person for four years running. Russia’s president has exerted his country’s influence in nearly every corner of the globe; he has gained a name as a leader who continues to get what he wants. Born in Saint Petersburg (then known as leningrad), Putin came from humble beginnings. his father was a conscript in the Soviet navy and his mother a factory worker. he is the youngest of three boys, two of whom sadly died before his birth (albert died in infancy, and Viktor died of diphtheria during the Siege of leningrad). Putin studied law at the leningrad State university, graduating in 1975. He then became a KGB foreign intelligence officer for 16 years and rose to the rank of lieutenant Colonel before retiring in 1991, when he entered politics. Moving to Moscow in 1996, Putin joined President Boris Yeltsin’s administration and rose quickly through the ranks to become acting President on 31 December 1999. throughout his career, Putin has received a large amount of recognition for his position and influence. In 2007, he was the Time Person of the Year. In 2015, he was first on the Time’s Most Influential People list. Forbes ranked him the World’s most Powerful individual every year from 2013 to 2016. In 2017, the International Business Times ranked Putin’s net worth at No. 1 in the world, at approximately USD$200 billion. 1 2 DOnalD tRumP Vladimir Putin the 45th President of the United States Net Worth: USD$4.5 billion age: 70 Education: Bachelor of arts / Science, University of Pennsylvania love him or loathe him, american businessman and television personality Donald trump is now the 45th President of the united States and the first billionaire to assume this position. Born in Queens, new York, trump’s father is of German ancestry and mother Scottish. his grandparents were immigrants from Kallstadt, Germany. his father, who became a new York City real estate developer, was born in the Bronx and his mother emigrated to new York, where she worked as a maid from her birthplace of tong, lewis, Scotland. trump’s career in real estate started by working for his father, who developed low-cost housing across Brooklyn and Queens. With a keen eye for expansion, trump expanded into manhattan, which strongly developed the business. he then entered into branding and licensing after his business was nearly wiped out in the real estate crash of the early 1990s. Trump has built, renovated, and managed numerous office towers, hotels, casinos, and golf courses. he previously owned both the miss uSa and miss universe pageants and hosted The Apprentice, a reality television series on nBC. With a net worth of uSD$4.5 billion, he has also been listed by Forbes as the 324th wealthiest person in the world and 113th richest in the united States.