Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner is set to be sworn in as president of Argentina, six weeks after her convincing win in October's election.

Handing over the presidential sash will be the outgoing president - her husband, Nestor Kirchner.

Mrs Kirchner will become Argentina's first elected female head of state.

Many regional leaders will attend the Argentine judge accuses ex-leader ...
Argentina rallies for missing man ... inauguration, while several countries have sent women to represent them in what will be a very feminine affair.

Huge mandate

For the first time ever, Latin America will have two women presidents at the same time, with Mrs Kirchner following the lead of Michelle Bachelet in Chile.

To reflect this rise of women in what has traditionally been a male-dominated world, several countries have sent women to represent them at the inauguration ceremony in the Argentine capital, Buenos Aires.

Among them will be the US Labour Secretary, Elaine Chao, Mexican Foreign Minister Patricia Espinosa Cantellano and the Governor General of Canada, Michaelle Jean.

The irony is that political analysts in Argentina say that the president-elect prefers working with men.

This inauguration will be very different from that of her husband, Nestor, in 2003.

Argentina was then emerging from an economic and social crisis - the future looked bleak.

But while many problems remain, the country has seen year-on-year economic growth and relative stability.

Mrs Kirchner still has to deal with high unemployment and rising crime, but she takes over Argentina's top job with a huge mandate and many friends in the region.

(BBC)

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