Duminda Hulangamuwa elected as Ceylon Chamber new Chairman
The Ceylon Chamber of Commerce elected Duminda Hulangamuwa as its new Chairman, at the 184th Annual General Meeting (AGM) held on June 30.
Hulangamuwa, who is Country Managing Partner of Ernst & Young Sri Lanka and the Maldives, succeeds veteran businessman Vish Govindasamy as Chairman of the Ceylon Chamber.
John Keells Holdings PLC Chairman Krishan Balendra and Standard Chartered Bank Sri Lanka CEO Bingumal Thewarathanthri were appointed as Vice Chairman and Deputy Vice Chairman, respectively for 2023/24.
The chief guest at the AGM, Ambassador of Japan Hideaki Mizukoshi, highlighted the importance of completing various reforms in line with the International Monetary Fund programme.
“Serious implementation of the reforms will also contribute to the improvement of the investment and business environment through financial stabilisation and the streamlining of administrative procedures through digital transformation initiatives. Japan supports very strongly such reform measures, which enhance transparency, efficiency and consistency,” he added.
Mizukoshi assured that Japan would continue to play a significant role in Sri Lanka’s debt restructuring process, “not only as a creditor nation but also as a longstanding friend of Sri Lanka”.
Acknowledging the key role that the Ceylon Chamber played during the height of the economic crisis, drawing on its vast repository of skill, experience and expertise to steer the private sector through the challenges, Hulangamuwa stressed that the chamber would continue to provide “even greater support to the relevant institutions to steer the country from a stabilisation path to one of growth and prosperity that will ensure equal opportunities for all Sri Lankans”.
He also stressed that as the leading business chamber in the country, the Ceylon Chamber would continue to actively address the issues faced by its members, including promoting corporate agriculture, removing price controls, promoting free trade agreements, tariff issues, etc., as the success of the Ceylon Chamber is directly linked to the success of each individual member.
In addition to the office bearers stated above, the following were elected to the board of the Ceylon Chamber: Amal Cabraal – Chairman of Lion Brewery (Ceylon) PLC, Ceylon Beverage Holdings PLC, Silvermill Investment Holdings and CIC Feeds Group of Companies, Kasturi Chellaraja Wilson – Group CEO of Hemas Holdings PLC, Sarath Ganegoda – Executive Director of Hayleys PLC, Supun Weerasinghe – Director/group CEO of Dialog Axiata PLC, Vinod Hirdaramani – Chairman of Hirdaramani Group and Buwanekabahu Perera – Secretary General and CEO of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce.