Siti Asiah Ahmad was appointed Malaysia's 10th Chief Statistician, effective July 15, 2026, taking over from Datuk Seri Mohd Uzir Mahidin who retired a week earlier after nearly nine years in the role [1, 2, 3, 4]. She brings 28 years of experience at the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DoSM), which she joined in 1998 as a statistician [1, 2, 3, 4].
At 51 years old, Siti Asiah holds a Master of Science in Economics from Universiti Putra Malaysia and a Bachelor's degree in Information Technology from Universiti Teknologi Malaysia [1, 2, 3, 4]. Before her promotion, she was Deputy Chief Statistician (Economic Programme), where she managed preparation of key national statistics such as GDP, external trade, industrial, and services data [1, 2, 3, 4].
Her career includes work on national strategic initiatives like the Padu Central Database Hub, cost-of-living statistics, and strengthening the National Statistical System [1, 2, 3, 4]. She has also contributed to statistical working groups under the United Nations, ASEAN, and other international bodies [2, 3, 4].
Mohd Uzir Mahidin retired on July 8 after 36 years in public service, including nearly nine years leading DoSM since 2017 [1, 2, 3]. Economy Minister Akmal Nasrullah Mohd Nasir said the government is confident in Siti Asiah’s "experience, expertise and service record to lead the Department of Statistics Malaysia" [1]. He emphasized the need for "faster, more accurate and more reliable" official statistics in a complex economic environment to help the government act earlier and target interventions more effectively [2].
Alongside Siti Asiah’s appointment, Norhayati Jantan was named Deputy Chief Statistician (Social and Technical Development) and Wan Mohd Shahrulnizam Wan Mohd Najuri as Deputy Chief Statistician (Economy) [1, 2, 3, 4].
