Dr Stephanie O’Keeffe, who previously held senior roles in the HSE including national director of operations planning and national director of health and wellbeing, has been appointed as Cuan’s CEO. A board is in the process of being appointed.

Speaking at the opening, justice minister Helen McEntee said: “Today is a proud day for all who were involved in bringing Cuan to life.

“The establishment of a dedicated statutory DSGBV agency has been a priority of mine and I am confident that Cuan will be the driving force we need to ensure we deliver the initiatives and changes which will get us to a place of zero tolerance across society for all forms of domestic, sexual and gender-based violence.

“In designing and delivering Cuan, government and NGOs have come together in collaboration and commitment. We have seen all political parties support the legislation to establish it, and we have seen unprecedented understanding and support for this work across society.

“This all happened in the wake of us working in partnership with the sector. We listened to all, including victims and survivors, before drafting the government strategy on DSGBV.

“It reflected the very strong view that, in order to achieve real and lasting change, we needed a focused entity permanently driving a coherent whole of government approach.”

The minister added: “I am delighted that someone of the calibre and experience of Dr Stephanie O’Keeffe, will now take on the task of running the agency.

“Given her extensive experience of nationwide service delivery, building new and robust teams, and driving forward ambitious whole of government priorities, I am confident this leadership is exactly what Cuan needs, in its formative years.”

Dr O’Keeffe said: “The challenge of leading Cuan and delivering on the zero tolerance strategy is one I look forward to. We will work to become a driving force, working across government, with the sector and all stakeholders, to build a national movement towards zero tolerance for DSGBV in Ireland.

“My work now is to establish our team and the functions of the new agency, from research and policy co-ordination, to awareness raising and driving delivery of safe and accessible support services including refuge accommodation.

“I would like to thank minister McEntee for trusting me with a task of such huge importance, and look forward to working with her department, all government departments and agencies and our close partners and stakeholders in the NGO and DSGBV sector.”