Gandhi, Modi among most admired leaders worldwide

Great leaders inspire by setting examples that others want to follow. Many of the top leaders, past and present, are in business or politics, and are making their mark on generations.

But which leaders do millennials admire the most?

With responses from 125 countries worldwide and 285 cities, the World Economic Forum’s Global Shapers Annual Survey 2015 is one of the most geographically diverse surveys of millennials.

10. Prime Minister Narendra Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is the 10th most admired personality globally, as per the survey. Modi assumed the prime ministership in May 2014.

1. Nelson Mandela

Nelson Mandela spent 27 years in prison before his release in February,1990. He became South Africa’s first black president in 1994, leading a multiracial democracy until 1999.

The abolition of apartheid remains Nelson Mandela’s greatest legacy, and under his leadership, South Africa emerged as a genuine democracy that saw many changes. Not all changes can be attributed to one man, but they were likely more rapid and profound.

2. Pope Francis

Pope Francis is the first Latin American and non-European pope in more than 1,200 years.

As the head of the Roman Catholic Church, he is the moral and spiritual leader of 1.2 billion people all over the world -- from the Philippines, where 86 per cent of the population identify as Roman Catholic, to Brazil, which has over 125 million Catholics.

4.  Mahatma Gandhi

Gandhi is known for his doctrine of nonviolent protests in order to achieve progress. The Indian lawyer, social activist, politician and writer became the leader of the nationalist movement against the British rule of India.

6. Barack Obama

The 44th president of the United States is the 6th most inspirational leader among the respondents of the survey. He also tops the ranking as the world leader with the most followers on Twitter.

9. Mohammad Yunus

Mohammad Yunus was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006 for founding the Grameen Bank and for their work to “create economic and social development from below”.

He is a Bangladeshi social entrepreneur and economist.