In Memoriam : Professor Sisira Jayasuriya – By Dr. Gamini Herath
Professor Sisira Jayasuriya passed away on the 18th of February 2025. He is a well-respected academic internationally, who worked with many excellent colleagues in several universities in Australia including La Trobe University, Melbourne University and Monash University. He also worked at the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), Australian National University (ANU), and the International Food Research Institute (IFPRI) in Washington which broadened his vision on critical issues on development specially on Asia.
My Association with Sisira, began in late 1966, when we were first year students of Peradeniya University in Sri Lanka. That friendship continued for over 55 years until now.
Sisira is a colourful personality and every moment spent with him is full of fun. Sisira’s family and my family (my wife Hemamala and daughter Nirmitha) were very close and that bond still remains strong.
His academic contributions have left an indelible mark on many issues on economics, Asian Development, international trade, and poverty analysis. The 2004 Asian tsunami was unprecedented and highlights the need to strengthen approaches to disaster risk reduction activities across Asia. Sisira’s book on the 2004 Tsunami emphasizes that global disaster risks are highly concentrated in poor countries specially the very poor communities who suffer more when such disasters occur. He created propensity to view resource use as threads of a more integrative approach to resource management. His work on land degradation titled “Economic Policy Reforms and the Environment: Land Degradation in Sri Lanka integrates the environmental issues with viable policy lessons “. This work blends scientific rigour and scholarly research to generate concrete policy recommendations specially for the plantation sector in Sri Lanka. Through his work on the ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka, he provides nuanced policy perspectives for sustainable development.
He remained active throughout being involved in writing and authoring many works He never turned away anyone who sought his help in academic and even personal issues and was ever ready to help or advice. He inspired countless professionals through supervision and his life serves as a testament to the impact one individual can have on a nation’s development.
Sisira professed fierce left-wing politics describing a range of political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism. His legacy is so lovely and so great. My association with Sisira glows with pride although tinged with sadness that he is no longer with us in this mortal world. He lived his life to the fullest and passed away, as handsome in death as he was in life.
Sisira was a great family man who doted his wife Sreeni and daughter Tanya. To them we offer our deepest sympathies.
By Dr. Gamini Herath,
(former professor of Economics, Monash University, Malaysia)
