Higgins became Ireland’s symbolic head of state Friday in a reverential Dublin Castle ceremony following his Oct. 27 election triumph. The 70-year-old was flanked by his two presidential predecessors, Mary McAleese and Mary Robinson.

In his nationally televised speech, Higgins called Ireland “wounded as a society, with unacceptable levels of unemployment, mortgage insecurity, collapsing property values and most of all many broken expectations.”

Higgins, a champion of Irish arts, says Ireland can best recover by promoting values of equality, charity and creativity.