Sri Lankan valuer appointed to South Asia Valuation Board

Thursday, 19 December 2013 00:27 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Sunil Fernando a Fellow of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors UK, (FRICS) and Managing Director of the chartered valuation surveyors firm Sunil Fernando and Associates Ltd. has been appointed to the RICS South Asia Professional Valuation Board. This is the first

time a Sri Lankan national has been selected to RICS South Asia Valuation Professional Group Board. The appointment is initially for a two-year term and commenced in November this year. “The board meets twice a year and I have recently returned from attending the first board meeting in Mumbai, India,” said Fernando. Deputy Mana-ging Director, RICS South Asia Devina Ghildial stated: “Sunil Fernando will be involved in steering the board forward strategically”. RICS Professional Group Boards are centres of professional and technical standards, knowledge and expertise. They are strategic, forward-facing and market-focussed to ensure the provision of appropriate practice standards and high quality professional knowledge. Responsible to the world regional boards and the Knowledge Board they have a key role to play in informing RICS strategic direction and contributing to the development of objectives and to the RICS business plan. Sunil Fernando in his long career spanning over 45 years, worked in Zambia, Botswana, Zimbabwe and Namibia from 1975 to 1999. Highlights of his career were the appointments by the Commonwealth Secretariat (CFTC) and the United Nation Development Program (UNDP) to serve as the Government Chief Valuer of Zimbabwe and the Government Chief Estate Officer of Namibia from 1989 to 1999 where he excelled in the acquisition of farm lands from European farmers for the settlement of indigenous people under the post-independence Land Reform and Resettlement Programs and the capacity building of the indigenous people in the valuation profession. He trained five Zimbabweans to become Professional Members of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors in 1995. On his return to Sri Lanka he set up his firm of professional practice in 1999 and now has branch offices in Matara, Kandy, Negombo and Wennappuwa. Sunil Fernando and Associates Ltd. continues to be the only private valuation firm to train and employ Estate Management and Valuation Graduates in Sri Lanka. Within the last five years three Sri Lankans have obtained Professional Membership of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors after completion of necessary training and successful completion of the Assessment of Professional Competence under direct supervision of Fernando. Currently he serves as a Member of the Compensation Tribunal established under the Revival of Underperforming Enterprises or Underutilised Assets Act No. 43 of 2011 and is a Member of the Technical Committee, Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka for implementation of Accounting Standards (IFRS). His main clients are commercial banks and financial institutions, chartered accountants, auditors and the mercantile sector.