Japanese Foreign Minister’s Commendations awarded to Senior Prof. H.D. Karunaratne
2022/8/9
The Japanese Foreign Minister’s Commendations was awarded to the eminent educationist, Vice Chancellor of University of Colombo Senior Prof. H.D. Karunaratne by H.E. Mr. MIZUKOSHI Hideaki, Ambassador of Japan to Sri Lanka on 29th July 2022 at the BMICH, Colombo 07.
As an icon in shaping the Sri Lanka and Japan’s academic ties for more than three decades, Prof. H.D. Karunaratne has been reaching out to Sri Lankan students by organizing and developing various academic projects, activities, campaigns in colleges and universities across the island and advocating the valued educational bond between the two countries.
Prof.H.D.Karunaratne held many positions at the University of Colombo. He was the founding coordinator of the Doctor of Business Administration program, Former Head of the Department of Business Economics in Faculty of Management and Finance and Former Dean of the Faculty of Management and Finance, University of Colombo. He also serves in many local and international educational institutions.
Prof Karunaratne’s relationship with Japan dates back nearly three decades. He obtained his PhD in Economics at the University of Nagoya in Japan under the Monbukagakusho (MEXT) Scholarship awarded by the Government of Japan. Being a strong pillar of the relationship between Sri Lanka and Japan, Prof Karunaratne plays a vital role as the current President of the Japanese Graduates’ Alumni Association of Sri Lanka (JAGAAS) by engaging in contributing to the mutual understanding and friendship between the two countries. After the appointment as the first Director of the University of Tokyo Sri Lanka office in 2019, he initiated several projects, campaigns across the country encouraging locals to study in Japan and commenced the notable “Study in Japan” campaign among Sri Lankan students.
Being an author, he wrote many books sharing his insights he gained during the time he spent in Japan, including the book published to commemorate the 60th Anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Japan and Sri Lanka, titled, A Journey in Harmony: Sixty Years of Japan-Sri Lanka Relations (2012).
The Foreign Minister’s Commendations are awarded to individuals and groups for their outstanding achievements in international field to acknowledge their contribution to the promotion of friendship between Japan and foreign countries.