New Zealand PM Jacinda Ardern returns from maternity leave

New Zealand's Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has returned to work after spending six weeks away on maternity leave.

Ms Ardern, 38, gave birth to her first child in June, making her only the second world leader to give birth while in office.

On Saturday she recorded a Facebook video where she outlined what she would be doing in her first week back.

Ms Ardern had passed on her duties to her deputy, Winston Peters.

"I'm going to be focused on getting straight back into it," Ms Ardern said in her Facebook Live video.

On 21 June she gave birth to her first child, Neve Gayford, four days after her due date.

The prime minister had continued to read cabinet papers and was consulted on significant issues during her time away.

Ms Ardern, who was elected in October, announced in January that she and her partner Clarke Gayford were expecting a baby.

"I am not the first woman to multi-task. I am not the first woman to work and have a baby - there are many women who have done this before," she said at the time.

She is the youngest prime minister the country has had since 1856.

In 1990, the late Benazir Bhutto gave birth to a daughter while serving as Pakistan's prime minister, a first for an elected world leader.

Source: bbc