New Delhi, June 25 -- Nearly a decade after leaving the White House, former US President Barack Obama says he is confident the United States will eventually elect its first female president, describing it as a natural step in the country's continuing progress toward greater representation.

Speaking in a wide-ranging interview with PEOPLE magazine alongside former First Lady Michelle Obama ahead of the opening of the Obama Presidential Center, Obama reflected on race, leadership, marriage and the legacy he hopes to leave behind.

Reflecting on the significance of becoming America's first Black president, Obama said one of his goals was to expand young people's sense of what was possible.

"I hoped suddenly girls started feeling like, 'Oka...