CA offers way to bridge critical skills gap 

The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka (CA Sri Lanka) has urged the government to integrate CA Sri Lanka’s Chartered Public Finance Accountant (CPFA) qualification into public service recruitment to bridge the critical skills gap in professionalising the country’s public sector finance management.

CA Sri Lanka President, Heshana Kuruppu said that there was an urgent need to professionalise Sri Lanka’s public sector finance management, drawing comparisons to Cyprus’ economic recovery, which saw a significant shift towards qualified professionals in financial roles.

Addressing CA Sri Lanka’s Annual Budget Seminar 2025, Kuruppu said although there are 1,200 public sector accountants in Sri Lanka, only 36 are professionally qualified as per recent most available statistics.

The Annual Budget Seminar 2025 held at the CA Sri Lanka auditorium brought together leading experts in finance, taxation, and policy, to analyze the country’s fiscal trajectory and provided a platform for in-depth discussions on the government’s budget proposals and their economic implications, with the keynote delivered by Dr. Harshana Suriyapperuma, Deputy Minister of Finance and Planning.

CA Sri Lanka also utilized the platform to reaffirm its commitment to supporting policymakers, businesses, and professionals in driving sustainable economic progress, while also underscoring its readiness to assist the government in key areas, including strengthening institutional governance of state-owned enterprises (SOEs).

Kuruppu, who emphasized the critical role of financial governance, public sector efficiency, and regulatory improvements in shaping Sri Lanka’s economic future. Highlighting the Budget’s key proposals, he called for greater institutional reforms, particularly in State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs).

“As you know, CA Sri Lanka played a pioneering role in introducing the corporate governance framework to corporates in the country and supported its voluntary adoption by many corporates well before it became law. We are ready to share our experience and expertise with SOEs to improve their governance structure, including the role of directors, the role of audit committees, improving transparency through timely reporting, and risk management. This support could be provided through organizing workshops or other knowledge-sharing initiatives to support the government’s plans,” Kuruppu said.

During the seminar, Sarah Afker, Chairperson, Faculty of Taxation, CA Sri Lanka, delivered the key highlights of the National Budget, which was followed by a high-profile panel discussion, featuring Thanuja Perera, Tax Policy Advisor, Ministry of Finance; Dr. Nishan de Mel, Executive Director, Verité Research; Dr. Roshan Perera, Economist; Nisreen Rehmanjee, Head of Corporate Finance & Group Tax, John Keells Group PLC; Ayesha Ashenthi, Commissioner, Department of Inland Revenue; and Afker, with the session being moderated by Saman Sri Lal, Council Member and Alternate Chair, Faculty of Taxation.