Jennifer Banim has been appointed the new Director General of the Central Statistics Office with effect from tomorrow.
Ms Banim is the first female Director General of the CSO since it was established in June 1949.
Her predecessor at the CSO, Pádraig Dalton, retired from the civil service this week.
Today's appointment follows a top-level appointment committee process, and nomination by Taoiseach Simon Harris and President Micheal D Higgins.
Ms Banim has been on the CSO's Management Board since 2013 and before her new appointment was the Assistant Director General at the CSO responsible for Economic Statistics.
She joined the CSO as a statistician in 1991 and worked in a number of areas including Balance of Payments and Financial Statistics, Statistical Methodology, and Technology.
Ms Banim is also currently co-chair of the Executive Board of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) High Level Group on the Modernisation of Statistics.
She studied at Dublin City University, graduating in 1989 with a BSc in Applied Mathematical Sciences and recently completed a Diploma in Strategy Development and Innovation at University College Dublin's Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School.
Jennifer Banim said the CSO is an independent and trusted source of insight and is an indispensable element in a democratic and informed society.
"Now in its 75th year, the CSO has established a strong connection with the Irish people based on our principles of impartiality, confidentiality, quality, and integrity," she said.
"This trusted relationship is at the core of everything that we do, and I am looking forward to leading the CSO, and its engaged and committed staff, in the next phase of its service to the Irish people," she said.
"I am excited about the developing opportunities being realised by the CSO's evolving role including delivering greater insights through new data sources, providing more statistical services across the wider civil and public service, all in support of independent insight and informed decision making," she added.
She also acknowledged the "significant contribution" made by her predecessor Pádraig Dalton.
"Pádraig’s commitment to expanding the reach of the CSO's insights to the widest possible audience is a testament to his belief in the value of official statistics and the public's right to live in an informed society," she said.
"Pádraig’s leadership and collaboration on statistical matters at an international level, including through the United Nations and Eurostat, is widely acknowledged and he is held in very high esteem," she added.
