Chartered Institute of Management Accountants

31 March 2006

On Tuesday 4 April 2006, the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) will open state of the art new buildings and facilities at its Sri Lankan headquarters in Colombo.

The ribbon will be cut and the plaque unveiled by the Prime Minister of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka the Hon. Rathnasiri Wickramanayake in the presence of His Excellency Stephen Evans, British High Commissioner, Mr Ian Christison, President, CIMA and Mr Lalith Fonseka, President, CIMA Sri Lanka Division.

Hundreds of guests are expected to gather for the opening ceremony and the evening’s cocktail party with representatives from the President of Sri Lanka’s office, the Central Bank, the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank, the Ministry of Trade, Commerce and Consumer Affairs, the Ministry of Finance and Planning and the Ministry of Education.

The opening ceremony will include drummers, dancers, the boiling of milk and the lighting of the traditional oil lamp culminating in addresses by the Prime Minister and CIMA Presidents.

The new building will host a new Student Services Centre, an improved Information Resource Centre with access to journals, on-line resources and a large study area, an auditorium that can hold over 150 people, an upgraded Computer-Based Assessment centre, a networking lounge for CIMA members and new and improved administrative facilities for the Divisional staff.

Speaking from Colombo, Ian Christison, CIMA President, said:

“This new building represents a tremendous development for CIMA’s members, students and staff in Sri Lanka and shows our significant commitment to the country.  CIMA, together with Sri Lankan colleagues, has been actively promoting excellence in business in Sri Lanka through quality management and business leadership since 1965.  The economic development of this beautiful nation in recent years is testament to the contribution of our members throughout all sectors and we have great confidence this growth will continue and we will be a part of that.  With almost 15,000 members and students in Sri Lanka, this is exactly why CIMA remains the premier management accountancy professional body in this country.”

“Highlighting the important place Sri Lanka has in our global strategy and the pride we take in the esteem in which CIMA is held here, it will be a great joy and privilege to welcome the Prime Minister to the ceremony and we are delighted that he has agreed to formally open the building.”

For media enquiries only, please contact:

Steven Hilton
Press Officer, CIMA
+44 (0) 20 8849 2427
steven.hilton@cimaglobal.com

Notes to editors

1. CIMA (the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants) is the only international accountancy body with a sole focus on business.  It is a world leading professional institute that offers an internationally recognised qualification in management accountancy, focusing on accounting in business, in both the private and public sectors. It is the fastest growing UK based accountancy body, in terms of members, in both the UK and worldwide and is the voice of over 85,000 students and 65,000 members in 158 countries.  CIMA is responsible for the education and training of management accountants who work in industry, commerce and not-for-profit and has more members in the public sector than any other UK based body.  CIMA prides itself on the commercial relevance of its syllabus, which is in tune with the activities of high performance organisations, and evolves continually to reflect the latest developments in global business.  It is committed to upholding the highest ethical and professional standards of members and students, and to maintaining public confidence in management accountancy.  For more information about CIMA, please go to www.cimaglobal.com

2. CIMA Sri Lanka began life as an Associate of the Cost and Works Accountants UK, back in 1965.  Throughout the intervening years, the division has grown in parallel with advances in the corporate world.  It has maintained a high level of activity and has confirmed management accountancy as one of the most respected professions in the country today.  Due to the exponential growth of the profession, CIMA Sri Lanka now has over 1,800 resident members and 11,000 students and they are widely represented in senior management positions in industry, commerce and finance.

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