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On January 23, 1849, American Elizabeth Blackwell became the first woman to receive a Medical degree in the US, graduating from Geneva Medical College in New York. Blackwell had to overcome rejection from dozens of faculties before being admitted. She later founded the New York Infirmary for Indigent Women and Children and paved the way for generations of female physicians.

On January 26, 1991, the central government of Somalia collapsed with the flight of dictator Siad Barre, beginning one of Africa's most prolonged and devastating civil wars. The country fragmented among warlords, rival clans and jihadist groups. Somalia became synonymous with failed state and its coast became the epicentre of modern international piracy.

On January 23, 1997, Madeleine Albright became the first woman to hold the position of US Secretary of State — the highest office in American foreign policy. Albright, born in Prague and a refugee of World War II, was the most influential diplomat of the Clinton era and a champion of international humanitarian intervention.