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Hemas Holdings PLC yesterday announced the appointment of two top professionals, Dr. Anura Ekanayake and Dinesh Weerakkody, as independent directors to its board.
Dr Anura Ekanayake is a past Chairman of Ceylon Chamber of Commerce (CCC) and a former Chairman of Industrial Association of Sri Lanka and of the International Natural Rubber Council based in Kuala Lumpur.
He has had an illustrious career in the public service as a Senior Economist of the Mahaweli Authority, Director on the Boards of the State Plantation Corporation and JEDB, Director of Planning to the Ministry of Plantation Industries and Director General of the Ministry of Public Administration.
He continues to serve as a member of the Governing Board of the Institute of Policy Studies and is a Member of the Sovereign Rating Advisory Committee of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka.
A Fellow of the Institute of Certified Professional Managers, he has a B.A. (Hons) and M.Sc (Agriculture) from the University of Peradeniya, and a Ph.D. in Economics from the Australian National University.
He currently serves on the boards of several listed and private companies.
The current Chairman of Commercial Bank, a former Chairman/CEO of the Employees’ Trust Fund Board of Sri Lanka and a Director of DFCC Bank 2003-2011,  Weerakkody serves and has served in a number of government and private sector boards. He is also a Vice Chairman of the International Chamber of Commerce, Sri Lanka Chapter.
During a long and illustrious career, Weerakkody was also Advisor to the Prime Minister of Sri Lanka from 2002-2004 and has served in many Cabinet Sub-Committees and national level committees on Economic Affairs, International Affairs and Labour Management.
A Graduate in Business Administration, an Associate of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants United Kingdom, Fellow Member of the Certified Management Accountants of Sri Lanka, and Professional Member of the Singapore Human Resource Institute, he obtained an MBA from the University of Leicester, England.