KUALA LUMPUR (July 15): Malaysia has named Siti Asiah Ahmad as chief statistician effective immediately, the Ministry of Economy said on Wednesday.

The appointment of Siti Asiah, 51, reflects the government’s confidence in her experience, expertise and service record to lead the Department of Statistics Malaysia, Economy Minister Akmal Nasrullah Mohd Nasir said in a statement. She previously served as Deputy Chief Statistician (Economy).

“In an increasingly complex economic environment, official statistics must be faster, more accurate and more reliable so that the government can act earlier and target interventions more effectively,” he added.

Siti Asiah is replacing Datuk Seri Mohd Uzir Mahidin who retired on July 8 after leading the department since 2017.

Previously responsible for gathering the nation’s key statistical data, including gross domestic product, external trade, industry and services statistics, Siti Asiah was also involved in national initiatives, such as development of the Padu Central Database Hub.

Siti Asiah joined the department in 1998 as a statistician. She holds a master's degree in economics from Universiti Putra Malaysia and an undergraduate degree in information technology from Universiti Teknologi Malaysia.

Wan Mohd Shahrulnizam Wan Mohd Najuri will take over Siti Asiah’s former role while Norhayati Jantan was named deputy chief statistician for social and technical development.