Chandra attends FIFA ‘Financial Governance Workshop’ in Bhutan

Tuesday, 21 April 2015 00:10 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Chandra J. Dias, a senior banker who is the Present Chairman of Finance Committee of Sri Lanka Football Federation, last week attended the ‘FIFA Financial Governance Workshop’ held in Bhutan organised by the FIFA-AFC for South Asian Region Member Associations consisting of over 10 countries, namely India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Maldives, Bhutan, Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. This workshop was one of the events the in FIFA-AFC calendar for 2015 to streamline financial management of all member associations in the

Asian region for better governance with the increase in FIFA-AFC funded programs amounting to million dollar assistance for the benefit of developing mainly women and youth football also futsal and beach football, etc., in their development program for the next four years. Chandra joined the FFSL in 2013 as Chairman of Finance Committee with his banking and sports career counting over 40 years. In his banking career he served in the General Banking Operations, Treasury, FOREX and Primary Dealer (fixed income) business, commencing with BOC for over 20 years and serving Public Bank, Pan Asia Bank and NatWealth Securities and he is currently with Entrust Group. As a soccer player he captained his alma mater St. Anthony’s College Wattala and associated with Wattala League in the early ’70s managing a soccer club (Sigiriya SC). He represented Sunrise Sports Club Colombo in Mihira Cup Tournament conducted by ANCL and was a member of the champion Western Province team which won the first-ever inter-province soccer title when K.B. Ratnayake was Minister of Sports. He joined BOC in 1970 where he got the opportunity to play along with soccer legends like Mahinda Aluvihare and P.D. Sirisena to name a few in the Nationalised Services tournaments where BOC was in the forefront. He served the Nationalised Services Sports Association for nearly 20 years in all sports activities being the General Secretary of the BOC Sports Club promoting all major sports. After BOC he joined the mercantile sector where he served as the Vice President of the Mercantile Football Association for many years; he was also the Treasurer of the Amateur Athletic Association in the early ’90s when late Lalith Athulathmudali was the President where Sri Lanka won the highest number of medals in athletics at the SAF Games in 1990. Chandra served the Kandy Football league as Vice President under the leadership of DIG Bodi Liyanage for over three years, to give a brief record of his association with football administration. At present Chandra’s dream is to establish a strong soccer academy in Kandy District where he spends his weekends getting young school-leavers both male and female from leading schools and outstations where you find the talent to form a formidable outfit similar to rugby’s top position in Kandy to make them professionals in the years to come.