During her first term as German chancellor, Angela Merkel had to deal with the economic and financial crisis of 2008, which helped forge her image as a defender of Germany's interests and her fellow citizens' savings. But there would be more challenges to come: the migrant crisis in 2015, and the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020. How will German history remember this scientist by training, who grew up in what was then East Germany, who defied the odds to become Germany's first woman chancellor? As Merkel prepares to bow out after 16 years in power, our Berlin correspondents report on her legacy.

A Kosovar artist creates a portrait of the outgoing German Chancellor Angela Merkel using some 100 kilogrammes of seeds.

From the outside, it doesn't look like much: a two-storey building with a logo in the dusty streets of Agadez in northern Niger. But there has been plenty happening inside the building at Air Info -- an ambitious media outlet that has been breaking exclusives in the Sahara Desert.

Angela Merkel is headed to Israel for a last official visit. With the shared history of the Holocaust ever present, the German chancellor deepened the firm alliance between the two countries during her time in office.

After 16 years as the Chancellor of Germany, Angela Merkel is calling it a day. The 67-year-old decision to retire has many reflecting on the legacy of the country’s first female chancellor, who is leaving the office with high approval ratings.⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣⁣ Over the years, she has earned swag of nicknames: the world’s most powerful woman, chancellor of the free world, the Queen of Europe, the Merkelator, and the liberal west’s “last defender”. In Germany, she is affectionately known as Mutti - short for mummy.⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣⁣

The two leaders discussed the pandemic, climate change and human rights during a video call. Xi Jinping reportedly called Merkel a "friend of the Chinese people."

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he hopes to continue working well with new German government during Chancellor Angela Merkel's farewell visit to the country.

The famous Cure Salee festival in northern Niger brings nomadic people from across the Sahara to celebrate their rich culture, hold camel races and meet with other dignitaries from the region.

Angela Merkel was praised as the "Eiffel Tower" of the European Union at her 107th, and likely final, leaders' summit. Even former US President Barack Obama sent a video message to Brussels for her.

At her last European Union leader's summit, outgoing German Chancellor Angela Merkel says she is leaving power "at a time when there is cause for concern" for the European Union, citing disputes on migration, the bloc's economy, and the rule of law in EU countries. of Angela Merkel

The famous Cure Salee festival in northern Niger brings nomadic people from across the Sahara to celebrate their rich culture, hold camel races and meet with other dignitaries from the region.

French President Emmanuel Macron took Germany's Angela Merkel to the Burgundy town of Beaune as part of her farewell visit. He presented her with France's highest award, the Grand Cross of the Legion of Honor.