{"id":30357,"date":"2026-08-05T05:50:12","date_gmt":"2026-08-05T05:50:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.natlib.lk\/ICNATLIB2026\/?page_id=30357"},"modified":"2026-08-12T05:20:31","modified_gmt":"2026-08-12T05:20:31","slug":"speaker-four","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.natlib.lk\/ICNATLIB2026\/speaker-four\/","title":{"rendered":"Speaker four"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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KEYNOTE SPEAKER<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Senior Prof. Premakumara de Silva<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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PhD in Social Anthropology, Edinburgh Professor (Chair), Department of Sociology University of Colombo Director General National Institute of Social Development (NISD),\u00a0 Sri Lanka<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Professor Premakumara de Silva is the Chair Professor of Sociology and Anthropology at the Department of Sociology, University of Colombo. He earned a PhD and MSc in Social Anthropology from University of Edinburgh, UK and MA and BA (Hon.) in Sociology from University of Colombo. He held the positions of an Honorary Research Professor at Deakin University, Australia and a Senior Research Fellow at University of Birmingham, UK. Former Deputy Vice-chancellor, Dean and Head of Sociology, Faculty of Arts, Senior Student Councellor, Act. Director Carrier Guidance Center of University of Colombo and the Acting Director at
National Center for Advanced Studies on Social Sciences (NCAS). Former member of UGC and the chairman of the UGC Standing Committees on Humanities and Social Sciences, Education, Fine Arts, Library and Information Science and Social Reconciliation.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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With over three decades of experience in teaching, research, and academic leadership, Professor de Silva has served as Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Chair of the Department of Sociology at the University of Colombo. His research focuses on sociology, social anthropology, religion, social development, ethnographic studies, and community development, and he has published extensively in national and international journals, books, and book chapters.<\/p>

Professor de Silva has received numerous prestigious awards for research excellence, including the Committee of Vice-Chancellors &amp; Directors (CVCD) Excellence Award for the Most Outstanding Senior Researcher in the Social Sciences. His contributions to academia and social development have established him as one of Sri Lanka&#39;s leading scholars in sociology and social anthropology.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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<\/span>IN COLLABORATION WITH<\/h2>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
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