Advisor, trainer, auditor and performance evaluator in environmental and sustainability field, Samantha Kumarasena heads the NCPC Sri Lanka with his two decades of national and international experience. He has steered the organization through a transformative period and established himself as a CEO with distinctive competencies and skills.
An Engineer from the University of Moratuwa, he holds a Master’s Degree in Textiles Studies as well an MBA in Management of Technology. Kumarasena is one of the most experienced cleaner production experts in the region and is an international consultant and a trainer.
We are working on several projects at the moment. We are in the process of implementing a project called Metabuild. Through this we are supporting 80 metal sector companies in the supply chain to the construction sector. This is a project that is funded by the European Union under the Switch Asia programme.
Q: How did you join NCPC?
Joining with NCPC was a turning point in my career. It was a new subject and a new experience. I enjoyed meeting a lot of new people. From a career development point, the capacity building programme on ISO 14001 environmental management systems under UNIDO integrated support programme in 2001 got me interested in this field and also supported my appointment. Later with projects like the cleaner production demonstration project in textile sector in 2003, I was able to gather the necessary experience and background to join NCPC as deputy in 2004. By 2015, with 20 years of experience in advocacy and capacity building, I was appointed the Chief Executive of the organisation.
Q: Can you explain some of your current projects?
We are working on several projects at the moment. We are in the process of implementing a project called Metabuild. Through this we are supporting 80 metal sector companies in the supply chain to the construction sector. This is a project that is funded by the European Union under the Switch Asia programme.
Then we have just completed a project on sound chemicals management. Though this project we selected 12 companies and had pilot applications and also did capacity building for three sectors. We were able to introduce smart chemical management into the state university curriculum in the chemistry and chemical engineering departments. We also developed a chemical management e-learning program which is open for everyone free of charge with a certificate awarded on successful completion of the course. These projects were implemented by UNIDO supported by the SICAM Secretariat for funding.
We are also in the process of implementing a two-year project in the consumption area – Consumer Information Project supported by a 10 year framework project by the United Nations Environment Programme.
Simultaneously we are also implementing a project on life cycle database development for the country that is funded by UNEP and likewise we have a Green Chemistry project that is supported technically by the pioneers in this field, Yale University in USA. UNIDO is implementing this in Sri Lanka along with eight other countries. We have also organized a key event on this subject in January from the 7th -12th for national level capacity building for Green Chemistry.
In addition to all these activities our organization this year supported the Ministry of Environment with the National Chemical Management Policy.
Q: Why does Sri Lanka need the NCPC?
The NCPC helps with capacity building at national level using novel environmental tools. A good example for this is the Green Chemistry conference we are organizing in January. We invite experts to participate and share their knowledge and experience and work in Sri Lanka.
Companies now have sustainability initiatives in line with a sustainability agenda. Most companies seek our support in this area, because this is where our knowledge and capabilities are. We have a service portfolio that we offer to organizations so that they can improve their environmental performance in the industrial facilities. The key areas we offer our services in are in resource efficiency, water efficiency, energy efficiency greenhouse gas quantification and carbon management plans, chemicals management and safety etc.
Our prices are very affordable as we are an non-profit organization. Our clients range from a vast area of industries. If you take textiles, all the leading companies like MAS, Brandix, Hidaramani are receive our services. However we offer our services at a subsidized price or free of charge. At the moment, we help and support companies though advocating, promoting and facilitating the process of mainstreaming environmental sustainability. In addition we offer offer support services to the industries through our service portfolio. We receive international support for filling the gaps.
The NCPC always steps in with policy support and advice while also introducing new tools and techniques to the country which aid with capacity building in proactive environmental management tools. We work very closely with the government to develop policy in this field and are represented in almost all the technical committees that come under the environment banner. We support with our technical inputs and in 2018 we supported the Environment Ministry to develop the National Chemical Management Policy – which is to be released soon.
Q: What are challenges faced by an environmental service provider and how does NCPC face this?
We are in the field of environmental management and this is not a core subject for the businesses and they treat it as a peripheral subject . They don’t prioritise it. Still, most of the companies are not willing to pay a commercial price for the environmental services. The challenge is that they have a lack of real knowledge on the business benefits of sustainability performance. One key benefit is that it supports image building, assisting companies to build and sustain better markets. One thing is the image building. Through this process, companies can get into the better markets with the better buyers. In addition to this, with in-house resource management and productivity, improvement can be brought in with these environmental improvements. Actually we are there to show them the business benefits in financial terms and to convince them.
Another problem in the country is that we are lagging behind in infrastructure and technology especially when compared to other nations. Even for environmental services we need monitoring and measurements. Equipment and these facilities are not really available compared to other regional countries. Let’s say equipment like energy meters, water meters . The available equipment are very expensive for hiring. This becomes a problem at company level. As a country we need to have the places for companies to hire them. In its absence the NCPC is now developing an instrument bank to cater to the industry needs. We have already purchased some and will buy some more with the assistance of funded projects.
Q:How do you retain competent staff?
Retaining staff is really a challenge. We believe that a competent staff is the key to the success of a company .Our staff is comprised with professionals. They are graduates with Masters Degrees from national and foreign universities. In our system we try to understand the needs of the staff ,especially the new generation. You can’t command and control them. Instead you need to catalyze them. We follow a system of participative management. The ideas of staff members are always collected and recognized . We actually use participative management techniques in our organization.
Most of them are driven by recognition for their work. We apply this mechanism and also maintain a very cordial organizational culture. We have offered freedom for working hours. Result-oriented targets are given . We have given the facilities to everyone to work from home. We are virtually networked. We are always in touch and contactable.
We also give the highest opportunities, training and exposure to our staff. We have plenty of opportunities though our international network. As well Wwe are equally connected with the government as well. We have international consultants also working for our projects. This gives a lot of exposure to our staff. We believe in the motto – One Organization – One Team.
Q: How do you add value to your customer?
We provide a high quality service at an affordable price. I always tell my staff not to consider ourselves as a local organization. We benchmark ourselves with Singaporean or Japanese companies. In Japan its high quality at a high price but in Singapore the same quality is offered at a more affordable price. Our prices to the companies are very competitive and reasonable. We should understand that the industry also is struggling. We give ratings to companies considering their level of commitment for the sustainability.
We give priority to the companies who get higher ratings when offering free of charge survives. We always maintain long-term relations with companies enabling them to follow up services on request.
Q: What are your organisation’s future plans?
Our existence is for a national purpose. We were set up for that purpose together with advocating, promoting and facilitating environmental sustainability. We always bring new tools to the country. We conduct national level programmes on green chemistry. We are developing a performance evaluation and recognition system for greening the businesses. It will be a system to recognize the companies who are continuously improving their sustainability performance. (a certification scheme).
Besides we are planning to go for under of our consultant development training programme. Also in the pipeline is enhancing and further improving the service needs of the companies at highest level, through collaborations and partnerships.
The message of NCPC is that the quality is the key to success and that technology is the cutting edge/ competitive advantage with strategy being the real driver. bmd