New Director General of Commerce (Actg.)

Monday, 25 May 2026 05:10 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Somasena Mahadiulwewa

Career commercial diplomat Somasena Mahadiulwewa, last week assumed duties as the Director General of Commerce (Actg.) at the Department of Commerce (DoC), Sri Lanka.

As a distinguished public servant, he has devoted over 24 years of service at the DoC, contributing extensively to the formulation and implementation of Sri Lanka’s foreign trade policy, international trade negotiations, trade promotion, and commercial diplomacy, to enhance national economic development and export growth.

During his career, he has served in key diplomatic assignments at Sri Lanka’s Foreign Missions in the United Kingdom, Italy, Japan, and South Africa, strengthening bilateral trade relations and advancing Sri Lanka’s commercial interests in global markets. He has also represented Sri Lanka at World Trade Organisation (WTO) Ministerial Conferences and contributed to major initiatives in Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations, trade remedies, and national trade policy development. Further, he has served as an intern at the WTO, Geneva, in 2009.

He holds academic qualifications in Economics, International Trade, and Public Management, earning a Bachelor of Science in Management (Public) Hons from the University of Sri Jayewardenepura Masters in Economics from the University of Colombo. He is also currently reading for a PhD in International Economics at the University of Colombo, focusing on FTAs and export diversification. Mahadiulwewa is a life member of the Sri Lanka Economic Association.

He hails from Mahadivulwewa of Trincomalee District and is an alumnus of Schools of Mahadivulwewa M.V, Trincomalee, and Niwaththakachethiya M.V, Anuradhapura.