| Profiles |
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| Board of Directors |
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Mr. N Deva-Aditya
Mr. Niranjan Deva-Aditya is a Director of Aitken Spence PLC. and has the distinctive honour of being the first person in history to be born in one continent (Asia) and to be elected to parliament in another (UK) and then represent that country as a member of the European Parliament (EP). |
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Born in Sri Lanka he was appointed Ambassador-at-Large by the Sri Lankan Government in 2001 and in 2006 the Buddhist clergy awarded him the title of “Vishwa Keerthi Sri Lanka Abhimani”.
He is Chairman of Europe-India Chamber of Commerce and EU-Indonesia Group and joint chairman of EU-China Friendship Group and EU-Afghanistan Parliamentary Liaison Group in the European Parliament. He is also a Director of DCSL; one of the largest publicly quoted conglomerates in Asia and a patron of the Global Organisation of People of Indian Origin (GOPIO).
Following the tsunami, being a ranking member of the European Parliament Development Committee he worked hard to get the maximum commitment of disaster relief and development and in the shortest period of time. He also assisted in the reconstruction and rehabilitation of the war torn country by inviting Norwegian peace facilitators to the EP.
Mr. Deva-Aditya is a former Chairman of Bow Group (a leading British political think-tank) and UK Department of Transport/National Consumer Council Committee. He is also a former Member of Council of the Royal Commonwealth Society.
In 2005 he led the European Parliament delegation to the United Nations commission on Sustainable Development and delivered a paper on the future of the UN at the US Council on Foreign Relations. He also led the EP delegation to the UN High-level conference on global aid funding and was Co-Chairman of the EP delegation to the World Summit at the UN 60th General Assembly. He is also the author of many legislative reports submitted in the EP since 1999. |
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Mr. V M Fernando
Mr. Manilal Fernando who is an Attorney at Law started his practice in his home town in Kalutara in 1972 and was the Secretary of the Bar Association, Kalutara for many years.
He is currently the Chairman of Holcim (Lanka) ltd and its subsidiary Companies since 1996, and Chairman of Shipping and Cargo Logistics (Pvt) Ltd (agents for Hyundai Shipping), Hyundai Lanka (Private) Limited (agents for Hyundai Cars in Sri Lanka), Stallion Holdings (Pvt) Ltd, Stallion Consultancy (Pvt) Limited, Stallion Plantations (Pvt) Limited and a Director of Guardian Investment Trust Limited., |
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After the Tsunami disaster he was appointed as the Chairman of the Board of Custodians of the Tsunami Disaster Fund for Holcim (Lanka) Ltd. This fund was formed with financial contributions received from Holcim Lanka Employees, its parent Company in Switzerland and Group Companies around the world.
Mr. Fernando is the Chairman of the Management Committee of the Football Federation of Sri Lanka and FIFA Development Officer in Colombo who had undertaken to construct Training centers in several districts in Sri Lanka
Mr. Fernando excelled himself in the field of sports, especially in Football and held many positions such as, President of the Local League, Past President of the Football Federation of Sri Lanka, Vice President of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), Chairman Legal Committee AFC, Member of FIFA Legal Committee and the FIFA Development Officer for the Asian Region. He has been the Vice President of the National Olympic Committee since 1990.
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Mr. D I Abeywardene
Head of Printing
Mr. Indrajit Abeywardene heads the Printing sector of the Group. He holds a Diploma from the London College of Printing, (UK) and counts many years experience and knowledge in the industry. |
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Ms Nilanthi Sivapragasam
Ms Nilanthi Sivapragasam who is the Chief Financial Officer of the Group, is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka and a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants of UK. |
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She serves on the Committees of several Faculties of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka, and is a member of the Urgent Issues Task Force. She previously served on the Council of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants – Sri Lanka Division. She is a member of the Statutory Accounting Standards Committee and is also a member of the Taxation Sub Committee of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce. |
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Mr. D V H de Mel
Head of Power Generation
Mr. Devan de Mel is the Managing Director of the Power Generation sector of the Group. He formerly headed the Corporate Planning Unit and was closely involved in the Group’s diversification into the power generation. He has a Bachelor’s Degree in Mechanical Engineering and a Master’s Degree in Business Administration. |
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Dr. P Dissanayake
Head of Shipping
Dr. Parakrama Dissanayake who heads Maritime Transport was the former Chairman/Chief Executive of the Sri Lanka Ports Authority and Jaya Container Terminals Ltd. Dr. Dissanayake serves on the UN/UNCTAD Panel as a Shipping and Ports Expert. |
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In addition, he is the Chairman of Experts Group on Trade in Services of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce. He holds a Ph.D in Management, a MBA and is a Chartered Marketer (FCIM), Chartered Shipbroker (FICS) and Chartered Fellow of Logistics & Transport (FCILT). He is a graduate of the Norwegian Shipping Academy, Oslo and is a past Chairman of the Institute of Chartered Shipbrokers and Past Chairman –Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport – Sri Lanka Branch. |
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Ms. N W de A Guneratne
Head of Insurance
Ms. Nimmi Guneratne is the Managing Director of Aitken Spence Insurance (Pvt) Ltd., and is the General Manager of the Lloyds Agency in Colombo and the Maldives. |
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She is a Fellow of the Chartered Insurance Institute of UK, and holds a Bachelor’s degree in Law and is also an Attorney-at-Law. She is also a visiting lecturer and examiner in Insurance Law at the Sri Lanka Law College and is also a lecturer and examiner of the Sri Lanka Insurance Institute. She is the current vice president of the Sri Lanka Insurance Institute. |
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Mr. S Ganeshan
Head of Aviation
Mr. Sasi Ganeshan is the Managing Director of the General Sales Agency of Singapore Airlines in Colombo, as well as the Company’s Outbound Travels division. |
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A Member of the Chartered Institute of Management UK, he counts many years of experience in and possesses a wide knowledge of the Travels industry. |
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Mr. C M S Jayawickrema
Director/GM Hotels
Mr. Susith Jayawickrama, an Associate Member of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants UK, was promoted to the Aitken Spence Group Board, in April 2005. |
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He is presently the Director General Manager of Aitken Spence Hotels and serves on the Boards of several hotel companies in the Group. He has been with the company for the past sixteen years and has wide experience and exposure in the tourism industry and in the field of finance. He also serves as a member of the Sri Lanka Hotels Association’s executive committee and the sub committee for fiscal and monetary policy. |
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Mr. R G Pandithakorralage
Head of Human Resources
Mr Rohan Pandithakorralage is heading Human Resources, operationally manages Group Business Development which handles New Ventures, Corporate Communications, Corporate Branding, Corporate Social Responsibility and group-wide initiatives. |
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He is the Past President of the International Public Management Association for Human Resources – Sri Lanka Chapter (IPMA) and Immediate Past President of the Association of Human Resource Professionals in Sri Lanka. He holds a Bachelors in Business Management from Victoria University, Australia. |
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Mr. D S Mendis
Head of Financial Solutions
Mr Dinesh Mendis, who heads Financial Solutions, is the Managing Director of MMBL Money Transfer (Pvt) Ltd, principal agents for Western Union Money Transfer which is a joint venture between Aitken Spence and Mercantile Merchant Bank. |
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He holds a BSc majoring in Marketing and Economics from Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania and a MBA majoring in Marketing from the University of Texas. |
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