DSI Samson Group appoints top legal professional Uditha Egalahewa as Chairman

DSI Samson Group, one of the leading business conglomerates and a leading manufacturer of footwear and bicycle tyres in Sri Lanka, ceremonially inducted President’s Counsel Uditha Egalahewa as Chairman of the group, on April 24, 2023. 

He is one of the three Independent Non-Executive Directors of the group and also served as Chairman of the group’s Risk Management Committee for the past five years.

Egalahewa is a leading practitioner in Public Law and Commercial Law, with over 32 years of experience at the Bar. He has served as a Senior State Counsel and as a Counsel in both original and appellate courts, dealing with various areas of law and is a senior visiting lecturer at several academic and professional organisations.

Egalahewa has published over 40 academic publications and made over 30 public presentations on topics relating to law. In addition to his legal practice, Egalahewa currently serves as an Independent Director in several companies, both listed and unlisted. 

He holds a Masters in Law (Public Law) (LLM) from the University of Colombo, a second Masters degree (Maritime and Shipping Law) (LLM) from the International Maritime Law Institute of Malta and a Postgraduate Diploma in Insurance Law from the University of Colombo. He was awarded the Professor Walter Muller Prize for his outstanding performance at the International Maritime Law Institute. As Chairman, Egalahewa will harness his vast experience and knowledge to lead and guide DSI Samson Group, which celebrated its diamond jubilee last year. The group, which over the years has expanded and diversified into many businesses beyond its core footwear business, is now managed by the third generation family members of founder Chairman, the late D. Samson Rajapaksa. The appointment of Egalahewa is expected to further strengthen the group’s corporate governance and strategic decision-making and help drive growth and success in the years to come.

Egalahewa expressed his gratitude for the opportunity to lead such a successful and diverse conglomerate while emphasising his commitment to advancing the group’s ambitious development plans by working closely with the board and stakeholders to achieve continued success. 

“As the new Chairman of DSI, I am honoured to lead a company with such a rich history and a strong legacy of success. I believe that the key to success is collaboration and I am excited to work with the talented and experienced team at DSI Samson Group to drive innovation, improve efficiency and enhance our competitiveness. 

Together, we will continue to grow the company and create value for all our stakeholders,” he added.
DSI Samson Group Managing Director Kasun Rajapaksa stated that the third generation board members are strong believers of the fact that in order to establish a system aimed at spanning generations, one must be willing to evolve. 

The board has now appointed its first ever non-family, Non-Executive Independent Director as Group Chairman for this reason. 

“We believe that bringing outside experience and knowledge to chair the group along with the other independent non-executive directors will further enrich and strengthen the group’s corporate governance. Someone from outside the family will inevitably possess a neutral perspective and will uphold the best interests of the shareholders, employees, customers and the entire organisation.  The chairman’s independence means they are not impacted by internal or external forces and the board can leverage that centred approach to reach informed decisions,” he added.