High Commissioner-designate to Singapore assumes duties

The newly appointed High Commissioner-designate of Sri Lanka to the Republic of Singapore, Sashikala Premawardhane assumed duties at the Mission on 24 June.

Her assumption of duties was marked by a simple ceremony that began with the lighting of the traditional oil lamp, followed by religious observances and chanting of pirith by the Maha Sangha.

Speaking on the occasion, the High Commissioner-designate set out her plans for strengthening bilateral relations between Sri Lanka and Singapore, emphasising the need for the vigorous promotion of trade and investment between the two countries.

Premawardhane joined the Sri Lanka Foreign Service in 1998, and her appointments in Colombo include a secondment at the Ministry of Defence as Senior Assistant Secretary (Foreign Affairs) as well as several key appointments in the Foreign Ministry including Director/United Nations, Multilateral Affairs, Human Rights and Conferences, Director/Technical Co-operation, and Deputy Director/Economic Affairs.

Overseas, she has served as Minister at the Sri Lanka High Commission in Canberra and as Acting High Commissioner of Sri Lanka in Australia. She also served in the Sri Lanka Embassy in Tokyo as First Secretary. 

Premawardhane holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from the University of Pune, India and a Masters in Conflict and Peace Studies from the University of Colombo. She is a past pupil of Bishop’s College, Colombo.