Rohan Samarajiva elected Chairman, Asia Pacific Information Superhighway

Prof. Rohan Samarajiva, the Chairman of the ICT Agency of Sri Lanka was elected as the Chairman of the Asia-Pacific Information Superhighway (AP-IS) recently. AP-IS is the Steering Committee of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP). He was elected at the Second Session of AP-IS in Bangkok, Thailand. 

Established in 1947, ESCAP is the regional development arm of the United Nations for the Asia-Pacific region. ESCAP works to overcome some of the region’s greatest challenges by providing results oriented projects, technical assistance and capacity building to member States.

The Asia-Pacific Information Superhighway initiative aims to increase the availability and affordability of broadband Internet across Asia and the Pacific, by strengthening the underlying Internet infrastructure in the region.

After he was elected, Prof. Samarajiva commented, “This is a moment of personal honour and privilege for me and my country. I know it is a challenge and need a significant commitment, but I am ready to accept it and contribute to the best of my ability.” Prof. Samarajiva acknowledged Minister of Telecommunication, Digital Infrastructure and Foreign Employment Harin Fernando for placing trust and confidence in his abilities and assigning to lead ICTA, the apex ICT institute of the Government of Sri Lanka. He also thanked the contributors of the Information Superhighway (AP-IS) Steering Committee and the Committee on Information and Communications Technology, Science, Technology and Innovation for their committed efforts. 

The CEO of the ICT Agency, Damith Hettihewa, also participated in the proceedings as a panellist on ‘Regional capacity building on information and communications technology for development’.

Congratulating Prof. Rohan Samarajiva on his new position, Harin Fernando added that under the leadership of Prof. Samarajiva, the new management of ICTA has been able to place the ICTA back on the track within a short period of time.