The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka (CA Sri Lanka), which has for many decades played a catalyst role in promoting thought leadership among 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.
 Invitees being welcomed by Sanjaya Bandara and Heshana Kuruppu
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The regional conference in Jaffna which attracted a diverse portfolio of participants from the North 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 and Restaurant in Jaffna, the full day event was graced by Governor of the Northern Province Jeevan Thiagarajah, as chief guest, and Prof. Sivakolundu Srisatkunarajah, Vice Chancellor of the University of Jaffna as the guest of honour.
Independent Non-Executive Director in a diverse portfolio of Listed and Unlisted companies including MNCs, Rajendra Theagarajah set the tone of the day with an insightful speech on the theme “Connect to Win.”
President of CA Sri Lanka, Sanjaya Bandara, Vice President of CA Sri Lanka, Heshana Kuruppu and Council Member and Chairman of the Regional Conference Committee Saman Sri Lal were present.
The conference comprised three sessions in line with the theme. The first session on “Connect With Opportunities: Unravel the invisible and achieve the impossible” Featured Social and Commercial Entrepreneur Jekhan Aruliah as the speaker which was followed by a panel session comprising Senior Lecturer at the Informatics Institute of Technology, Ms. Abarnah Kirupananda and Owner of Jaffna Horticulture, Justin A. Kumar, while Finance Professional and Associate Member of CA Sri Lanka A. Athithan served as the moderator.
The speaker at the second session on “Connect Within Doors: Grow and succeed together” was Founder and CEO of Academics Group, Kandeban Balendran. The panel session brought together, CEO and Co-Founder of ezBooking, Ms. Suveethan Jaruza and Senior Professor of Accounting of the Faculty of Management Studies and Commerce of the University of Jaffna, Prof. T. Velnampy. The session was moderated by Partner – Audit at Ernst & Young, Rajeev de Silva.
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 for businesses to commence, operate, grow, and prosper in the region and across the country. The panelists comprised of Chief Financial Officer of Commercial Bank, Nandika Buddhipala, Council Member of CA Sri Lanka, Saman Sri Lal, Freelance Consultant and Former Director of Deutsche Bank, Thushy David, Strategic Consultant at the Women’s Chamber of Industry and Commerce Sri Lanka, Ms. Tusitha Kumarakulasingam and Chairman of the Chamber of Commerce and Industries of Yarlpanam, Vignesh Kularatnam. The session was moderated by Heshana Kuruppu.