DeshamanyaDeshamanya is the second highest Sri Lankan national honour awarded by the Government of Sri Lanka as a civil honour.It is conventionally used as a title or prefix to the awardee's name....
Gamani Corea (born: 4 November 1925) is a
Sri LankaSri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
n
economistAn economist is a professional in the social science discipline of economics. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy...
, civil servant and
diplomatA diplomat is a person appointed by a state to conduct diplomacy with another state or international organization. The main functions of diplomats revolve around the representation and protection of the interests and nationals of the sending state, as well as the promotion of information and...
. He was the former
Secretary-General-International intergovernmental organizations:-International nongovernmental organizations:-Sports governing bodies:...
of the
United Nations Conference on Trade and DevelopmentThe United Nations Conference on Trade and Development was established in 1964 as a permanent intergovernmental body. It is the principal organ of the United Nations General Assembly dealing with trade, investment, and development issues....
and
Under-Secretary-General of the United NationsAn Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations is a senior official within the United Nations System, normally appointed by the General Assembly on the recommendation of the Secretary-General for a renewable term of four years....
from 1974 to 1984, Ceylon's
AmbassadorAn ambassador is the highest ranking diplomat who represents a nation and is usually accredited to a foreign sovereign or government, or to an international organization....
to the
EECThe European Economic Community The European Economic Community (EEC) The European Economic Community (EEC) (also known as the Common Market in the English-speaking world, renamed the European Community (EC) in 1993The information in this article primarily covers the EEC's time as an independent...
,
BelgiumBelgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
,
LuxembourgLuxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany. It has two principal regions: the Oesling in the North as part of the Ardennes massif, and the Gutland in the south...
and the
NetherlandsThe Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, the
Permanent SecretaryThe Permanent secretary, in most departments officially titled the permanent under-secretary of state , is the most senior civil servant of a British Government ministry, charged with running the department on a day-to-day basis...
of the Ministry of Planning and Economic Affairs of Ceylon and the Senior Deputy Governor of the
Central Bank of CeylonThe Central Bank of Sri Lanka is the monetary authority of Sri Lanka. It was established in 1950, two years after independence. The founder governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka was John Exter, while the minister of finance at the time was J.R...
. He was the son of Dr.C.V.S.Corea and Freda Corea, sister of Sir
John KotelawalaGeneral Sir John Lionel Kotelawala, KBE, CH, KStJ, CLI was a Sri Lankan soldier and politician, most notable for serving as the 3rd Prime Minister of Ceylon from 1953 to 1956....
, Prime Minister of Ceylon. Dr. Gamani Corea's grandfather was the famous freedom fighter from
ChilawChilaw is a western seaboard town on the island of Sri Lanka.It is a bustling town with a famous fishmarket and beach...
,
Victor CoreaCharles Edward Victor Seneviratne Corea was born in Chilaw, Sri Lanka on 29 January 1871 to Charles Edward Bandaranaike Corea, a famous lawyer, and Henrietta Seneviratne. He was the youngest out of five children, three boys and two girls, Charles Edgar Corea, James Alfred Ernest Corea, Agnes Corea...
who was a member of the
Legislative Council of CeylonThe Legislative Council of Ceylon was the legislative body of Ceylon established in 1833, along with the Executive Council of Ceylon, on the recommendations of the Colebrooke-Cameron Commission. It was the first form of representative government in the island...
.
Education
Gamani Corea was educated at the prestigious Royal College, Colombo, after which he started his higher education at the
University of CeylonThe University of Ceylon was the only university in Sri Lanka from 1942 until 1972. It had several constituent campuses at various locations around Sri Lanka. The University of Ceylon Act No. 1 of 1972, replaced it with the University of Sri Lanka which existed from 1973 to 1978. In 1978 it was...
in 1944, before going to study at
Corpus Christi College, CambridgeCorpus Christi College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. It is notable as the only college founded by Cambridge townspeople: it was established in 1352 by the Guilds of Corpus Christi and the Blessed Virgin Mary...
and
Nuffield College, OxfordNuffield College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. It is an all-graduate college and primarily a research establishment, specialising in the social sciences, particularly economics, politics and sociology. It is a research centre in the social sciences...
from 1945 to 1952. There he obtained two
BAsA Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
and
MAA Master of Arts from the Latin Magister Artium, is a type of Master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The M.A. is usually contrasted with the M.S. or M.Sc. degrees...
s from both the
University of OxfordThe University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
and the
University of CambridgeThe University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
, and afterward a DPhil from Oxford.
He has also received a Doctor (Honoris Causa) from the University of Nice; a DLitt (Hon) from the
University of ColomboThe University of Colombo is a public research university located primarily in Colombo, Sri Lanka...
; and a
DSc-in academia:* D.Sc., Doctor of Science* Doctor of Surgical Chiropody, superseded in the 1960s by Doctor of Podiatric Medicine* Dalton State College, Georgia* Daytona State College, Florida* Deep Springs College, California* Dixie State College of Utah...
(Honoris Causa) from the
University of Sri JayewardenepuraThe University of Sri Jayewardenepura is one of the Universities in Sri Lanka. It is located in Gangodawila, Nugegoda, near Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte, the capital city of Sri Lanka...
.
Career
Corea returned to Ceylon briefly to work as a Research Officer at the Central Bank of Ceylon before leaving for Oxford to do his DPhil. He returned in 1952 to work as an economist and later the Director of Planning Secretariat of the Government of Ceylon in 1952 till 1960 at the same time functioning as the Secretary, National Planning Council.
From 1960 to 1964 he was the Director of Economic Research at the Central Bank and in 1965 was appointed the
Permanent SecretaryThe Permanent secretary, in most departments officially titled the permanent under-secretary of state , is the most senior civil servant of a British Government ministry, charged with running the department on a day-to-day basis...
of the Ministry of Planning and Economic Affairs of the Government of Ceylon.
In 1970 he was transferred to the Central Bank as its Deputy Governor and later its Senior Deputy Governor till 1973 when he took up appointment as Ceylon's Ambassador to the
European Economic CommunityThe European Economic Community The European Economic Community (EEC) The European Economic Community (EEC) (also known as the Common Market in the English-speaking world, renamed the European Community (EC) in 1993The information in this article primarily covers the EEC's time as an independent...
, Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands.
UN
He was a Member (1965–1972) and Chairman (1972–1974) of United Nations Committee on Development Planning; Chairman, ILO Meeting on Evaluation of Comprehensive Employment Missions to Colombia, Kenya, Iran and Sri Lanka, (1973); Chief, United Nations Planning Mission to British Honduras, (1962); Special Representative of the Secretary General of the UN Conference on Human Environment, ( 1971–1972); Secretary-General of the United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries, Paris, (1981); Member, UN Panel of Eminent Persons on South Africa and Transnational Corporations, (Sept. 1985); Member, UN panel of Eminent Persons on "The Relationship between Disarmament and Development", (April 1986); Team Leader, UNDP High Level Multi-Disciplinary Mission to Qatar, (13–26 April 1987);
Chairman: United Nations General Assembly: Ad Hoc Committee of the Whole on an International Development Strategy for the Fourth Development Decade, (1989–90);
UNCTAD secretary-general
Dr Gamani Corea assumed post of Secretary-General of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development on 5 April 1974 after he was appointed in 1973 for an initial term of three years by former
United Nations Secretary-GeneralThe Secretary-General of the United Nations is the head of the Secretariat of the United Nations, one of the principal organs of the United Nations. The Secretary-General also acts as the de facto spokesperson and leader of the United Nations....
Kurt WaldheimKurt Josef Waldheim was an Austrian diplomat and politician. Waldheim was the fourth Secretary-General of the United Nations from 1972 to 1981, and the ninth President of Austria, from 1986 to 1992...
. He was thereafter re-appointed three times, his fourth term covering the period December 1982 until the end of 1984. As Secretary-General of UNCTAD and until the end of February 1985, Dr. Corea also held the position of Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations.
Later work
Following his departure from the UN he founded the Sri Lanka Economics Association; was the Chairman of the South Centre Working Groups on Environment and Development and a board member of the South Centre.
He held several positions, including the
ChancellorChancellor is the title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the Cancellarii of Roman courts of justice—ushers who sat at the cancelli or lattice work screens of a basilica or law court, which separated the judge and counsel from the...
of the
Open University of Sri LankaThe Open University of Sri Lanka is a national university in Sri Lanka. It is unique within the Sri Lankan national university system for being the only university to offer programmes of study leading to certificate, diploma, degree, postgraduate diploma and postgraduate degree through the...
; Honorary
FellowA fellow in the broadest sense is someone who is an equal or a comrade. The term fellow is also used to describe a person, particularly by those in the upper social classes. It is most often used in an academic context: a fellow is often part of an elite group of learned people who are awarded...
,
Corpus Christi College, CambridgeCorpus Christi College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. It is notable as the only college founded by Cambridge townspeople: it was established in 1352 by the Guilds of Corpus Christi and the Blessed Virgin Mary...
; Honorary
FellowA fellow in the broadest sense is someone who is an equal or a comrade. The term fellow is also used to describe a person, particularly by those in the upper social classes. It is most often used in an academic context: a fellow is often part of an elite group of learned people who are awarded...
, Institute of Development Studies,
University of SussexThe University of Sussex is an English public research university situated next to the East Sussex village of Falmer, within the city of Brighton and Hove. The University received its Royal Charter in August 1961....
; Chairman, Board of Governors, Institute of Policy Studies; Honorary Fellow, Bandaranaike Centre for International Studies; Fellow, National Academy of Science of Sri Lanka; Honorary President, Association of Former Civil Servants, Sri Lanka; Senior Adviser to the
Ministry of Foreign AffairsThe Ministry of Foreign Affairs is a ministry of the Government of Sri Lanka that conducts and manages Sri Lanka's relations with other countries...
; Joint Patron, Sri Lanka Economics Association; Patron, Symphony Orchestra of Sri Lanka.
Awards
- Order of the Yugoslav Flag with sash (I. rank), for the promotion of international understanding - Government of Yugoslavia, 1985;
- Title of Deshamanya
Deshamanya is the second highest Sri Lankan national honour awarded by the Government of Sri Lanka as a civil honour.It is conventionally used as a title or prefix to the awardee's name....
from the Government of Sri Lanka, First Honours list, Independence Day, 4 February 1986;
- Award for International Understanding - Sahabdeen Foundation .
Honorary degrees
He has received several honorary degrees; University of Nice - Doctor (Honoris Causa)
University of ColomboThe University of Colombo is a public research university located primarily in Colombo, Sri Lanka...
- DLitt (Honoris Causa)
University of Sri JayewardenepuraThe University of Sri Jayewardenepura is one of the Universities in Sri Lanka. It is located in Gangodawila, Nugegoda, near Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte, the capital city of Sri Lanka...
-
DSc-in academia:* D.Sc., Doctor of Science* Doctor of Surgical Chiropody, superseded in the 1960s by Doctor of Podiatric Medicine* Dalton State College, Georgia* Daytona State College, Florida* Deep Springs College, California* Dixie State College of Utah...
(Honoris Causa)
See also
External links