Part of President’s cost reduction drive One Chairman to manage a cluster of institutions

• Plans are underway for shared services for procurement, human resource administration, finance and streamlining process

By Kelum Bandara  

Instead of appointing separate chairmen for related state institutions, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has decided to place them under the purview of a single Head for better coordination of work and cost reduction, an official said yesterday. 

In one instance, Jayantha Wickramasinghe has been appointed the chairman of four government institutions- Coconut Cultivation Board, the Coconut Development Authority, Coconut Research Institute and Kapruka Fund Management Board.  

Mr. Wickramasinghe served as CEO of Lanka Logistics and Technologies Limited, and also at the Ministry of Defence and Urban Development Authority from 2006 to 2015.  
A government official said this had been done as otherwise the authorities of such institutions would proceed in different directions hampering work.   

In another instance, Sri Lanka Tourism Development Board, Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau, Sri Lanka Convention Bureau and Hotel School have been placed under Kimarli Fernando as the Chairperson.   The official said plans are underway for shared services for procurement, human resource administration, finance and streamlining process. He said it was an exercise aimed at reducing costs and improving efficiency.   

• Jayantha Wickramasinghe appointed chairman of four govt. institutions 
• Kimarli Fernando as the Chairperson of  Tourism Development and Promotion Bureau
• This was an exercise aimed at reducing costs and improving efficiency