Sri Lanka’s Kanaka becomes first Asian woman to be elected as CIMA President

• Also elected co-chair of the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants
• Urges accounting profession to step forward and build trust, opportunity and prosperity

 Melanie Janine Kanaka, FCMA, CGMA, has been elected the 89th President of The Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA), the world’s largest professional body of management accountants, and is the first-ever Asian woman to become its chief.
She will also serve as Co-Chair of the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants (the Association), which represents the combined membership of CIMA and the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA).

During her year in office, Kanaka will focus on reinforcing the accounting and finance profession’s commitment to being a trusted adviser for their organisations and serving the public interest. In addition, she will champion the profession’s need to continuously upskill and reskill to meet ever-evolving market demands. 

Kanaka will also put a strong emphasis on inspiring younger generations to join the dynamic profession, advancing the profession’s digital skills and capabilities, and the importance of fostering diversity, equity and inclusion.
She will work closely with Anoop Natwar Mehta, CPA, CGMA, who will serve as AICPA Chair and Chair of the Association, to represent the world’s largest public and management accounting bodies(AICPA and CIMA) to meet the demands of a constantly changing, disruptive world.

On her appointment, Kanaka said it is a true privilege to have been chosen by her peers to serve the members and students of CIMA around the world and represent the profession on the global stage.
“Over the past few years, the profession provided vital support and guidance to organisations to help them, not only survive, but also adapt and thrive in a world that has irremediably changed. As the world continues to undergo radical, disruptive changes at an accelerating speed, we must as professionals offer bold leadership,” said Kanaka.
“Now is the time for the profession to lean in and take the next step forward.We must make sure that we continue to deliver innovative solutions to create value, build trust, seize new opportunities and help deliver prosperity for individuals, organisations, economies and society as whole,” she added.

Melanie is the first-ever Asian woman to be elected President of CIMA. She became a CIMA member in 1992and obtained her fellowship in 2000. She has been an active member of CIMA for over three decades and has held several volunteer positions both in Sri Lanka, her home country, and internationally. Kanaka Melanie also currently serves on the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants’ Board of Directors.
Kanaka has extensive experience in corporate finance and development banking across the USA, Germany and South Asia. She currently leads the finance and administration function for the World Bank in Sri Lanka and Maldives where she is responsible for finance, resource management and performance review and is part of the World Bank’s South Asia regional unit. 

Kanaka is a Fulbright Scholar and an accredited SAP consultant who holds an MBA specialising in international finance and corporate strategy from Emory University’s Goizueta Business School in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. She also holds a 1st class B. Com (Hons) degree from the University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Sri Lanka, and is a distinguished alumna of Bishop’s College, Colombo, Sri Lanka