Thursday Nov 28, 2024
Thursday Nov 28, 2024
Wednesday, 22 April 2015 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
CA Sri Lanka UAE Chapter members together with the dignitaries
President of the CA Sri Lanka UAE Chapter Kirupananthan Ramiah presenting a memento to CA
Sri Lanka Vice President Lasantha Wickremasinghe
The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka (CA Sri Lanka) ceremoniously inaugurated its overseas chapter in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) recently in the presence of diplomats and professionals, at the Emirates Ballroom of the JW Marriott Marquis Hotel in Dubai.
The event was held under the patronage of the CA Sri Lanka Vice President Lasantha Wickremasinghe and Charge d’ Affaires of the Sri Lankan Embassy in Abu Dhabi and Consul General of the Sri Lankan Consulate in Dubai and Northern Emirates.
In his speech, Wickremasinghe noted that CA Sri Lanka laid claim to being one of the most progressive and influential members of the International Federation of Accountants, which is the global apex body of accountants.
“Members are our primary stakeholders and have played a key role in uplifting the image and standing of our prestigious institute while also giving leadership to enhance the standing of the accounting profession across Sri Lanka as well as overseas, including the Middle East,” he said.
Wickremasinghe pointed out that CA Sri Lanka’s members were not only a significant contributor to the country’s foreign exchange but were in fact an ambassador to Sri Lanka as well as to the accounting profession.
“You are the face of our nation and thus the responsibilities lying on your shoulder are vast,” he said.
With the numbers of CA Sri Lanka members across all continents constantly growing, over the years the institute has established several chapters including in Qatar and Bahrain which aid the professional progression of the members living overseas.
“These chapters have played an important role in bringing our members together in those respective countries while also working towards their professional development. Today, we boast of an international presence with over 30% of our members located in 40 countries. The UAE has a very large number of our members, which was why steps were taken to establish a chapter here,” Wickremasinghe said.
Apart from being an important platform which will help in the progression of members, the UAE chapter, with its strategic location, could help position Sri Lanka in the world arena by further facilitating and enhancing trade and investment between Sri Lanka and the UAE, Wickremasinghe said.
The inauguration ceremony was further boosted by the presence of representatives of other professional accounting bodies based in the UAE. The representatives included the Chartered Accountants from India, Pakistan, United Kingdom; Chartered Management Accountants from UK and Certified Public Accountants from Australia.
Approximately 70 members of CA Sri Lanka residing in UAE were present at the occasion and representatives of the CA Sri Lanka chapters in gulf countries were also present at the inauguration ceremony.
