The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka (CA Sri Lanka), which has for many decades played a catalyst role in promoting thought leadership amongst the business community, once again took the lead to assist professionals and entrepreneurs understand the growing need to seize the right opportunities and how to foster economic growth, as the county continues to face numerous challenges, including those related to climate change, an ageing population, food and water scarcity, as well as pollution.
The regional conference in Jaffna which attracted a diverse portfolio of participants from the Northern region brought together a renowned panel of industry leaders and experienced professionals who helped participants understand the importance of ‘Power of Connection’ and how connections are an important enabler to facilitate the flow of trade, capital, energy, and people.
Held at the Green Grass Hotel & Restaurant in Jaffna, the full day event was graced by Mr. Jeevan Thiagarajah, Governor of the Northern Province as Chief Guest, and Professor Sivakolundu Srisatkunarajah, Vice Chancellor of the University of Jaffna as Guest of Honour.
Mr. Rajendra Theagarajah, Independent Non- Executive Director in a diverse portfolio of Listed and Unlisted companies including MNCs set the tone of the day with an insightful speech on the theme “Connect to Win.”
Mr. Sanjaya Bandara, President of CA Sri Lanka, Mr. Heshana Kuruppu, Vice President of CA Sri Lanka as well as Mr. Saman Sri Lal, Council Member and Chairman of the Regional Conference Committee also attended the event.
The conference comprised of three sessions in line with the theme. The first session on “Connect With Opportunities: Unravel the invisible and achieve the impossible” Featured Mr. Jekhan Aruliah, Social and Commercial Entrepreneur as the speaker which was followed by a panel session comprising of Ms. Abarnah Kirupananda, Senior Lecturer at the Informatics Institute of Technology and Mr. Justin A. Kumar, Owner of Jaffna Horticulture Private Limited, while Mr. A. Athithan, Finance Professional and Associate Member of CA Sri Lanka served as the moderator.
The speaker at the second session on “Connect Within Doors: Grow and succeed together” was Mr. Kandeban Balendran, Founder & CEO of Academics Group who is also the President & Chair of the board of the Harvard Club Sri Lanka. The panel session brought together Ms. Suveethan Jaruza, CEO and Co-Founder of ezBooking, who is also a Board Member of the Northern Chamber of Information Technology, and Professor T. Velnampy, Senior Professor of Accounting of the Faculty of Management Studies and Commerce of the University of Jaffna. The session was moderated by Mr. Rajeev De Silva, Partner – Audit at Ernst & Young.
The third and final session on “Connect With Support Network: Winning support to move forward” took on the form of a panel discussion which focused on the support required for businesses to commence, operate, grow, and prosper in the region and across the country. The panelists comprised of Mr. Nandika Buddhipala, Chief Financial Officer of Commercial Bank of Ceylon PLC, Mr. Saman Sri Lal, Council Member of CA Sri Lanka and Managing Partner at RTA Sri Lanka, Mr. Thushy David, Freelance Consultant and Former Director of Deutsche Bank, as well as Ms. Tusitha Kumarakulasingam, Strategic Consultant at the Women’s Chamber of Industry & Commerce Sri Lanka and Mr. Vignesh Kularatnam, Chairman of the Chamber of Commerce and Industries of Yarlpanam (CCIY). The session was moderated by Mr. Heshana Kuruppu, Vice President of CA Sri Lanka.
