South Asia Partnership
GOVERNING COUNCIL
Mr Prasanna Premaratne
Mr Premaratne joined DFCC Bank in 1991 as a Development Banker, and was involved in financing Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) for nearly 24 years. He commenced his professional career as a planter at Pelwatte Sugar Industries (PSI) in 1984. He was one of the pioneer members of the management team of PSI. He is also a life member of the Association of Professional Bankers of Sri Lanka. Mr Premaratne retired as the Chairman of the Regional Development Bank in April 2018, having served the bank for over three years. Subsequently he was appointed to the Board of SANASA Development Bank as an Independent Director.
Ms Shafinaz Hassendeen
Shafinaz Hassendeen was Senior Programme Officer, International Labour Organization (ILO) (1998-2014) and served in Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Thailand. Prior to joining the ILO she was Senior Advisor at the Royal Norwegian Embassy (1979-1998), Programme Director at Worldview International (1995) and Research Officer at Marga Institute (1977-1979). She has a BA Hon. degree in Sociology from the University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka and an MPhil in Development Studies (from the Institute of Development Studies, University of Sussex, UK).
Mr Thivanka Jayasinghe
Mr. Thivanka Jayasinghe is a partner of Pricewaterhouse Coopers Sri Lanka, leading audits in varied sectors and is also the deputy assurance leader of the Firm. He has in total more than 23 years of experience in external audit, internal audit, accounting, restructuring, investigation and other advisory services covering varied jurisdictions. He joined PWC after working at KPMG in the Bahamas.
He was a council member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka and the Association of Accounting Technicians of Sri Lanka. He is also a past president of the Institute of Internal Auditors Sri Lanka Chapter. Mr. Jayasinghe recently served as a member of the Financial System Stability Consultative Committee of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka
Ms. Eranthi Premarathna
Ms. Eranthi Premaratne
Attorney-at-Law, independent consultant
B.Sc (Colombo), MA in International Relations, University of Colombo
Board Member (w.e.f. 01.06.2024)
Ms. Eranthi started her journey at SAPSRI after graduating from university, and has made impactful contributions to renowned organizations such as the Centre for Policy Alternatives, Nike Inc, MAS Holdings (Pvt) Ltd, and the Sustainable Apparel Coalition. She is skilled in integrating environmental, social, and governance factors into daily business operations. She has also received training in Gender Diversity from INSEAD; and creative Leadership from University of Virginia USA. She has consulted for private companies and international organizations such as the ILO, IFC, and ITC. With her background in the apparel and footwear value chain, she has served as an advisor to numerous local and global projects on labour compliance, and increasing women’s labour force participation and advocates for working women and women empowerment. Her work in this sphere has won her international recognition.
Mr Henry De Mel
Mr Henry de Mel has more than 32 years of experience as a development consultant. He has worked with SIDA and NORAD. His expertise is in the field of community development, particularly in project planning, monitoring and evaluation. He has undertaken these tasks in respect of many NGOs, INGOs, UN agencies and donor agencies over a long period of time.
Air Commodore
R K Dehideniya (Rtd)
Ms R K Dehideniya has 40 years of experience in the legal sphere, out of which almost 30 years was in the public service and in the Sri Lanka Air Force serving as the Chief Legal Officer. Prior to this, she was the Deputy Commissioner, Legal of the Agrarian Services Department, and Assistant Commissioner, Legal in the Land Commissioner’s Department. With her wide experience and knowledge, she is presently serving as a Member of the Board of Review of the Agrarian Development Department.
Ms. M.A. Emeldar Sukumar
Ms. Emelda Sukumar joined the Sri Lankan Administrative Service in 1984. She has held key positions such as A.G.A, Divisional Secretary, and District Secretary/Government Agent in Vavuniya, Mullaitivu, Kilinochchi, and Jaffna. She also served as Secretary to the Ministry of Social Services, State Ministry of Child Affairs, and as an Additional Secretary at the Presidential Secretariat. Additionally, she was the Additional Project Director for the World Food Programme and Chairperson of Paranthan Chemicals Corporation Limited.
Ms. Sukumar possesses extensive experience in administration, management, conflict resolution, leadership, project planning, and mentoring. She has been involved in numerous foreign-funded projects focused on livelihood development and child welfare. Furthermore, she served on the National Committee on Women under the Ministry of Women Affairs.
Mr. Channa Kumar Jasenthuliyana
Mr. Channa Jasenthuliyana is an experienced IT consultant with over four decades of expertise in IT/Application Systems. With qualifications in MSc in Information Technology and MBCS, he has held leadership positions at prominent financial institutions in Sri Lanka, including Sampath Information Technology Solutions Limited and DFCC Bank. His recent role as a Consultant IT at the Regional Development Bank of Sri Lanka showcases his continued contributions to the IT sector. Channa Jasenthuliyana holds a Master of Science in Information Technology from the University of Keele in the United Kingdom. Additionally, he has earned a Diploma in Computer System Design from the National Institute of Business Management in Sri Lanka and a Basic Management Program from the Asian Institute of Management in Manila, Philippines