MR. D H S JAYAWARDENA

Chairman

Mr. Harry Jayawardena was elected Chairman of Lanka Milk Foods (CWE) Plc in October 2008 after serving as the Managing Director for nearly 17 years. He is one of the most successful and renowned entrepreneurs in Sri Lanka who steers many successful enterprises in diversified business arenas.

He is the Founder Director and current Chairman/Managing Director of the Stassen Group of Companies – a diversified group in export and import trade. He is also the Chairman of Aitken Spence PLC, Browns Beach Hotels PLC, Aitken Spence Hotel Holdings PLC, Aitken Spence Hotel Managements Asia (Pvt) Ltd., Negombo Beach Resorts (Pvt) Ltd., Lanka Power Projects (Pvt) Ltd., Milford Holdings (Pvt) Ltd., Milford Developers (Pvt) Ltd., Milford Exports (Ceylon) (Pvt) Ltd., Ceylon Garden Coir (Pvt) Ltd., C B D Exports (Pvt) Ltd., Timpex (Pvt) Ltd., Texpro Industries Ltd., Melstacorp PLC., and its subsidiaries Distilleries Company of Sri Lanka PLC., Periceyl (Pvt) Ltd., Balangoda Plantations PLC., Lanka Bell Ltd., Bell Solutions (Pvt) Ltd. Madulsima Plantations PLC., Lanka Dairies (Pvt) Ltd, Ambewela Livestock Company Ltd, Pattipola Livestock Company Ltd., Ambewela Products (Pvt) Ltd, Indo Lanka Exports (Pvt) Ltd., Bogo Power (Pvt) Ltd., United Dairies Lanka (Pvt) Ltd. and Bellactive (Pvt) Ltd. 

He is the Managing Director of Stassen Real Estate Developers (Pvt) Ltd., and serves as a Director on the Boards of Stassen Plantation Management Services (Pvt) Ltd., Melsta Gama (Pvt) Ltd, Melsta Health (Pvt) Ltd., Hospital Management Melsta (Pvt) Ltd and DCSL Brewery (Pvt) Ltd. He is the Honorary Consul General for Denmark in Sri Lanka and the only Sri Lankan to be honoured with the prestigious “Knight Cross of Dannebrog” by Her Majesty Queen Margrethe II of Denmark, for his significant contribution to the Danish arts, sciences and business life.

MR. C R JANSZ

Director

Appointed as a Director to the Board of LMF in the year 1992. He has many years of experience in the import/ export field and services related to international trade including logistics, documentation,insurance, banking, and finance.

Mr. Jansz is a Director of the Stassen Group, Melstacorp Group, Lanka Milk Foods Group and Distilleries Company of Sri Lanka PLC. He is the Chairman of Melsta Hospitals Ragama (Pvt) Ltd. and Melsta Hospitals Colombo North (Pvt)Ltd

He has been the Chairman of DFCC Bank PLC. and the Sri Lanka Shippers Council.Mr. Jansz holds a Diploma in Banking and Finance from the London Metropolitan University– UK. He is a Chevening Scholar and a UN-ESCAP Certified Training Manager on Maritime Transport for Shippers.Mr. Jansz specializes in the movement and finance of international trade and has many years practical experience in these fields.

MS. D S T JAYAWARDENA

Executive Director

Ms. Stasshani Jayawardena was appointed to the Board of Lanka Milk Foods (CWE) on 19th August 2019.She marks several milestones for Aitken Spence PLC, Aitken Spence Hotel Holdings PLC and Browns Beach Hotels PLC as the youngest board member and as the first female member on the board. Jayawardena heads the tourism sector of Aitken Spence PLC inclusive of hotels, destination management and overseas travel. With a career spanning over 10 years at Aitken Spence, she wields a fresh perspective in management and leads strategic business units across the Group. She leads several key strategic teams as the Chairperson of Aitken Spence Hotel Managements (Pvt) and Splendor Media Ltd.; as a member on the Board of Directors of Aitken Spence PLC, Aitken Spence Hotel Holdings PLC, Stassen Group, Aitken Spence Aviation (Pvt) Ltd, Western Power Company (Pvt) Ltd and other companies.

A graduate of St. James’ & Lucie Clayton College and Keele University in the United Kingdom, Ms. Jayawardena made waves from a young age. She was the youngest intern to work under US Senator Hilary Rodham Clinton and the Former US President Bill Clinton in 2003; and was appointed as the Sri Lankan Ambassador for EY NextGen Club from 2017 to 2019.She is a member of the PWC NextGen Advisory Board since 2020, the Executive Board of The Hotel Association of Sri Lanka (THASL) and was appointed to represent THASL at the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce Committee meetings since 2019 (Hotel sector). She was appointed as a Council Member of the EFC and as Chairperson of the EFC Hotels and Tourism Employers Group for the Financial Year 2020/2021. She is also the Executive Committee Member for the year 2020/21 at the International Chamber of Commerce in Sri Lanka. Ms. Jayawardena represents the Company as the Ambassador from Aitken Spence PLC at the Target Gender Equality initiative of the UN Global Compact since 2020. She is also a member of the Austrian Business Circle in Sri Lanka. In recognition of her work and commitment to inspire, she was recognized at Top 50 Professional & Career Women Awards in Sri Lanka with a Gold award in the Hotel & Hospitality Sector in 2017, and in 2020 by Sri Lankan business magazine, Echelon, listing her among the most innovative and influential young leaders who have succeeded in business and shaping the future of Sri Lanka. At present she leads a team of international professionals in strengthening the service foundations and formulating the strategic road map for the tourism sector of the Group. Her passion remains in designing the next generation of business with the core values of integrity, sustainability, empowerment and equal opportunities with the use of data driven technology.

MR. D HASITHA S JAYAWARDENA

Non-Independent / Non-Executive Director

Mr. Hasitha Jayawardena was appointed to the Board of Lanka Milk Foods (CWE) Plc on 11th July 2016. 

Mr. Jayawardena joined the Stassen Group in February 2013. He serves as a Director on the Boards of  Stassen Exports (Pvt) Ltd., Milford Exports (Ceylon) (Pvt) Ltd., Stassen International (Pvt) Ltd., Stassen Natural Foods (Pvt) Ltd., Stassen Foods (Pvt) Ltd., Ceylon Garden Coir (Pvt) Ltd., Milford Developers (Pvt) Ltd., C B D Exports (Pvt) Ltd., Distilleries Company of Sri Lanka PLC., Periceyl (Pvt) Ltd., Melstacorp PLC., Lanka Dairies (Pvt) Ltd., Ambewela Livestock Company limited., Pattipola Livestock Company Limited., Ambewela Products (Pvt) Ltd., United Dairies Lanka (Pvt) Ltd., Zahra Exports (Pvt) Ltd., Balangoda Plantations PLC., Madulsima Plantations PLC., Mcsen Range (Pvt) Ltd., Melsta Gama (Pvt) Ltd., Melsta Health (Pvt) Ltd., DCSL Brewery (Pvt) Ltd., Melsta Hospitals Ragama
(Pvt) Ltd. and Melsta Hospitals Colombo North (Pvt) Ltd.

Mr. Jayawardena holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration BBA (Hons) from the University of Kent in the United Kingdom. He has also worked as an Intern at the Clinton Global Initiative programme (CGI) in New York in 2007.

Mr. H M A JAYESINGHE

Non-Executive Independent Director

Mr. Manil Jayesinghe was appointed an Independent Director of the Lanka Milk Foods (CWE) PLC on April 01st 2024. 

Mr. Jayesinghe is a fellow Member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka, the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (UK) and the Certified Management Accountants of Sri Lanka. He is also a member of The Chartered Institute of Public Finance & Accountancy.

Mr. Jayesinghe possesses over 41 years of experience in Advisory and Industry across key sectors in Sri Lanka, Maldives and Bhutan. He served as the Country Managing Partner of Ernst & Young Sri Lanka & Maldives from 2021 – 2023, Head of Assurance Practice for Sri Lanka and Maldives, and the Professional Practice Director of Sri Lanka from 2003 -2023

As the partner in Charge of the Banking, Financial and Insurance Services practice of the Ernst and Young Sri Lankan and the Maldivian firms, Mr. Jayesinghe has served as a key resource person in audits and consulting engagements in a multitude of industries, including banking, Financial and Insurance Services, manufacturing, retail, hospitality, wholesale business and telecommunication and gained extensive commercial experience. He has also been engaged in the valuation of business and strategic plans for Financial Institutions.

Mr. Jayesinghe is the current Chairman of the Statutory Accounting Standards Committee and a member of the Statutory Auditing Standards Committee. He serves in many other committees of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka, Chairs the Accounting Standards Committee of the South Asian Federation of Accountants (SAFA), a member of Commission of Securities & Exchange Commission of Sri Lanka, a board member of the Board of Investment of Sri Lanka and a member of the Governing Board of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka. 

Mr. Jayesinghe is a past president of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka. He has served as a council member of the National Chamber of Commerce of Sri Lanka, a board member of the CIMA Sri Lanka board, a member of the International Accounting Education Standards Board of the IFAC, a council member of the Moratuwa University, a member of the Board of Sri Lanka Accounting & Auditing Standards Monitoring Board, a Council member of CMA Sri Lanka and have served as a consultant to the Audit Committees of the Listed Companies.

Furthermore, Mr. Jayesinghe was the Head of the IFRS/SLAS Desk in EY Sri Lanka, reporting to the Area IFRS Desk based in Hong Kong. As a resource person for the Central Bank Training Centre, he has conducted many training sessions on Accounting, IFRS and Basel. He was the lead engagement partner on Audits subcontracted to EY by the Auditor General of Sri Lanka.

Mr. Jayesinghe is an Independent Director on the Boards of Diesel and Motor Engineering PLC, Ceylon Hospitals PLC, C W Mackie PLC, Sahasiya Investments Ltd and John Keells Holdings PLC.

Mr. J T M COORAY

Non-Executive Independent Director

Mr. Thusitha Cooray was appointed an Independent Director of the Lanka Milk Foods (CWE) PLC on April 01st 2024.

He holds a MBA from Henley Business School, UK, and a BSc in Management from the University of London (Int). He holds a Professional Postgraduate Diploma in Marketing from the Chartered Institute of Marketing, UK and has completed a Transformation Leadership Programme at INSEAD Business School in Fontainebleau, France. 

Mr. Thusitha Cooray began his career in apparel manufacturing in 2001 and has held numerous positions within the industry. He possesses over 22 years of experience in Marketing and Business Development, Business Transformation, Corporate Planning, Strategy and Operations. During this time, he worked closely with leading Global Brands and Supply Chain partners to foster strategic business relationships. 

Mr. Thusitha Cooray currently serves as Chief Transformation Officer at a leading Apparel Manufacturer based in Sri Lanka. 

MR. SASANKA PERERA

Group Chief Executive Officer

Mr. Sasanka Perera holds a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from Buckinghamshire New University, UK and he also holds a Post Graduate Diploma in Marketing from the Chartered Institute of Marketing, UK.

Mr. Sasanka Perera was appointed as the Group Chief Executive Officer on 15th November 2023. He is a prescient & Analytical Senior Sales and Customer management professional having over 21 years of experience in the Sales and Marketing arena with a wealth of knowledge in the fields of FMCG, Food and Beverages, having worked for Multinational Giants like Unilever Sri Lanka, Coca-Cola Beverages Sri Lanka, and as the Head of Group Sales at Maliban Biscuit Manufactories (Pvt) Limited prior to joining Lanka Milk Foods to perceive a fantastic all-round exposure.