Women in Logistics and Transport Sri Lanka holds 11th AGM

New WiLAT President Prof. Renuka Herath

Annual General Meeting of Women in Logistics and Transport (WiLAT) Sri Lanka to appoint the new Chairperson and Executive Committee members for the term 2024/25, was held on 14 May at BMICH Lavender Hall. 

Sri Lanka Institute of Information Technology Department of Information Management Professor Prof. Renuka Herath was unanimously appointed for the second term to lead WiLAT team for the year 2024/25 supported by Aitken Spence Logistics Assistant General Manager Prashani Liyanage in the capacity of the Secretary and National Transport commission former Director General Vijitha Weerasinghe as the incoming Treasurer for the year 2024/25. 

Prof. Renuka Herath will also be supported by three Vice Chairpersons (VCs): Schneider Electric Lanka Ltd. Supply Chain and Logistics General Manager Kumari Sumanasekara as the VC Membership Development, Fonterra Brands Sri Lanka Head of Manufacturing Aranthi Fernando as the VC Branding and Sponsorships and Unilever Sri Lanka Ltd. Head of Customer Service and Logistics Rumal Fernando as the VC Membership Services. Supporting the three main pillars, the Executive Committee will include dynamic professionals from the Logistics and Supply Chain industry and leading organisations in Sri Lanka to advance WiLAT’ s annual agenda. This occasion was graced by Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (CILT) Sri Lanka President Chandima Hulangamuwa, WiLAT Founding Chairperson, Advisor, and WiLAT Global Immediate Past Chairperson Gayani De Alwis, CILT Immediate Past President Dr. Namali Sirisoma, Immediate Past Chairperson Niroza Gazzali, WiLAT members, corporate partners and sponsors.

Prof. Renuka is a Chartered member of CILT, and presently holds the position of Professor- Department of Information Management, Sri Lanka Institute of Information Technology. She joined WiLAT in 2016 and served as the outgoing Chairperson of WiLAT 2023/24 Tenure. In her professional career, Renuka has 20 years of experience as an academic at the University of Kelaniya. She works as visiting lecturer for many state and private universities for the subjects of Logistics Management, Operations and Supply Chain Management, Services Supply Chain Management, Lean Management, Lean Six Sigma, etc. Her research interests lie in the areas of Supply Chain Management, SMEs, Logistics Management, Six Sigma and Fashion Industries. She has published more than 40 papers authored in Logistics and Supply Chain and Marketing disciplines in local and international refereed and indexed journals. She had chaired various conferences and sessions at both national and international level research symposia and disseminated her knowledge by delivering keynote speeches at many international conferences. She works as an editorial and review member of many reputed international journals and conferences focused on Logistics and Supply Chain Management. She has conducted a few trainings on Lean Six Sigma and contributed to many local and private universities in the capacities of developing their Logistics and Supply Chain Management related curricular and delivering invited speeches and lectures. She is also working as an examiner for local and international universities as an examiner for Master and Doctoral theses. Many PhD students are being supervised from private and public universities in the field of Logistics and Supply Chain Management. She had won many awards for her research and academic excellence.

As an outgoing Chairperson of 2023/2024 term, she paid tribute to the dedication, resilience, and vision of the founding chairpersons and all the chairpersons and executive committee members who established and lead WiLAT so far supporting industry and helping women who are shattering glass ceilings and rewriting the narrative of logistics industry. She also acknowledged the WiLAT membership and her team during her tenure of 2023/2024 who were the driving force of the logistics and transport industry. She also went on to elaborate the initiatives executed through the three pillars of WiLAT: Membership Development, Membership Services and Branding and Sponsorship driven by the three dynamic Vice Chairpersons, Aranthi Fernando, Kumari Sumanasekara, Rumal Fernando respectively, aptly been supported by Secretary Vijitha Weerasinghe and Treasurer Prashani Liyanage.  

Drawing up some statistics during her speech she elaborated that WiLAT has seen a flourishing membership base, thanks to initiatives deployed by Membership Services teams, such as coordinating and ensuring factory visits for university students and industry professionals for hands on experiences and knowledge sharing, insightful workshops, webinars, and seminars conducted for professional, Financial, and personal grooming. 

Work carried out by Membership Development team was also noted with appreciation in her speech as outgoing Chairperson, as she elaborated how the team’s tireless efforts have translated into a remarkable expansion of CILT membership base through strategic and targeted membership drives, which successfully engaged both university students and corporate entities, injecting WiLAT and CILT with a diverse and dynamic energy. She also spoke about the WiLAT’ s signature initiative, the Ignite mentoring program which has acted as a beacon of guidance and support for young men and women aspiring to navigate the exciting world of logistics and transport and how WiLAT has ensured nurturing next generation of talent, who will continue to contribute positively during years ahead.

Prof. Renuka also thanked and elaborated exceptional work carried out the Branding and Sponsorship team who continued to share the work done by all pillars taking WiLAT brand to next level in social & print media creating a hype and excitement which has helped to create an exclusive and inspiring image for WiLAT locally and globally in many platforms. Special mention was done on the Branding and Sponsorship team for spearheading the memorable 10th-year anniversary celebration and International Women’s Day celebration which helped pass on a powerful testament to WiLAT’s remarkable journey which solidified the WiLAT Sri Lanka’s impact on the global stage.

On a special note, she also shared her deepest appreciation with Prashani Liyanage, Vijitha Weerasinghe who served as our dedicated secretary and the treasurer for 2023/24 tenure and for the overall support extended by the parent body and the staff of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport for providing the necessary administrative and financial support in carrying out the planned activities.

The Founding Chairperson Gayani De Alwis thereafter formally handed over responsibilities back again to Professor Renuka Herath for 2024/25 tenure and read out the newly appointed WiLAT Exco team who will take this year’s agenda forward.

Prof. Renuka Herath thanked the membership and CILT for the trust placed in her and her team and reaffirmed the commitment to take WiLAT Sri Lanka to greater heights with the newly appointed WiLAT Exco, to drive leadership, entrepreneurship, mentorship and empowerment which will help overcome many challenges the logistics industry faces as an ongoing basis. WiLAT Sri Lanka will take further steps during this year to support Women to thrive in this industry through empowerment while creating a platform for mentorship, networking, and professional development by creating visibility of women in leadership roles, advocate for equal opportunities, and inspire the next generation of female leaders. 

Women in Logistics and Transport (WiLAT) Sri Lanka is the Women’s Forum of The Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (CILT) Sri Lanka. WiLAT Sri Lanka, one of the five pioneering fora in WiLAT Global, was inaugurated on 21 March 2013 to promote the Logistics, Transport, and Supply Chain industry to female members and support their career development, following the global launch of WiLAT in June 2013. By 2018, WiLAT had over 2000 members in 20 countries and by 2023, it had established its 38th chapter and was still growing. WiLAT’ s vision is to be the most sought-after for advocacy, professionalism, and empowerment of women in Supply Chain, Logistics, and Transport Its mission is to elevate women’s status in Logistics and Transport by uniting supporters of their career development and providing a support network and mentoring opportunities.