Kuala Lumpur, 19 Nov (The Capital Post) – The Assembly of the Association of Natural Rubber Producing Countries (ANRPC) has appointed Mr. R. B. Premadasa, Director-General of the Rubber Development Department of Sri Lanka, as the Secretary-General of the organization to succeed Dr. Nguyen Ngoc Bich of Viet Nam who is completing the term on 30 November 2019.
ANRPC appoints its Secretary-General by following a rotation among its member governments. The intergovernmental organization, established in 1970 and headquartered in Kuala Lumpur, has currently 13 member nations which contribute 90% of the global production and 65% of the global consumption of natural rubber.
Mr. Premadasa, who belongs to the Sri Lanka Administrative Service (SLAS), brings along with him to ANRPC his three-decades of leadership and managerial experience in framing rubber development policies, formulation of smallholder-oriented ten-year master plans for rubber sector, and their implementation. Before becoming the Director-General of the Rubber Development Department in 2009 and continuously occupying the position for the past 10 years, he had held positions such as Director, Deputy Director (Development), Regional Director and Assistant Director of the same organization. Besides representing Sri Lanka in various forums of the ANRPC, International Rubber Study Group (IRSG) and other international rubber platforms, Mr. Premadasa has chaired several international seminars and workshops. He holds a masters in business administration and bachelors in economics.
Mr. Premadasa will assume the new position on 1 December 2019 for a period of three years. – The Capital Post