Showcasing opportunity

31st ICASL National Conference “timely and relevant”

The 31st National Conference of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka (ICASL) was held recently. Themed ‘The World Sees Opportunity in Sri Lanka,’ the conference was lauded by the participants including business leaders, Chairmen, CEOs, CFOs, Directors, General Managers, senior Government officials and academics as well as consultants.

The conference was inaugurated by Prof. G.L. Peiris, Minister of External Affairs, the Chief Guest at the ceremony where the Keynote Speaker was Mohan Pieris, President’s Counsel and Attorney General of Sri Lanka.

The ICA National Conference is one of the most sought-after events in the corporate calendar of the country and is the most attended conference in Sri Lanka.  This year too, the conference turned out to be a resounding success with over 1,000 participants including some of the leading personalities in the corporate and public sectors.

Commenting on the conference, Ashela Abewardhana, Controller – Commercial Division, Nestle Lanka PLC said “I found the theme to be very timely and relevant. The line up of sessions, speakers and panellists were excellent. The inaugural technical session by the Governor of the Central Bank was really good… it set the pace for the rest of the technical sessions enlightening the participants on the national agenda in taking Sri Lanka to the next level. It is always good to be aware of the big picture so that we know where we fit in the national agenda.”

The two days of technical sessions featured an eminent panel of paper presenters, namely: Ajith Nivard Cabraal, Governor of the Central Bank; Prof. Nalin Kulatilaka, Wing Tat Lee Family Professor of Management and Professor of Finance at the School of Management of the Boston University; Arjuna L. Mahendran Managing Director of the HSBC Private Bank in Asia and former Board of Investment Chairman; Prof. P.C. Narayan, faculty member, Finance & Control Area of the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore (IIMB); Reyaz Mihular, Partner of KPMG Ford, Rhodes, Thornton & Co. and Head of the Advisory service line; and Naomal Goonewardena, Attorney-at-Law and a partner of Nithya Partners.

The paper presentations were further complemented by panel discussions with 20 local and foreign experts, who utilised these sessions as a platform for fruitful deliberations.

“I must first congratulate ICASL in selecting this year’s theme - the world sees opportunity in Sri Lanka,” said Minister Peiris, who gave a complete, high-level economic breakthrough that registered a great degree of optimism in the mindset of the audience.

Recognising the role of professional institutes in giving impetus to the country’s development endeavour, this year’s ICA National Conference was pitched as a business summit. The new format was widely received and stimulated interest of a larger audience.