The Federation of Sri Lankan Local Government Authorities (FSLGA) has become the twenty-third ICMA international affiliate, joining a growing network of local government organizations worldwide.

An affiliation agreement, signed by ICMA President David Limardi, city manager, Highland Park, Illinois, and ICMA Executive Director Bob O’Neill was transmitted to FSLGA in May. Seizing the opportunity presented by their attendance at the recent Commonwealth Local Government Conference in Freeport, Bahamas, ICMA Director of International Programs David Grossman transmitted the signed agreement to Hemanthi Goonasekera, FSLGA’s national coordinator. In Sri Lanka, she and Hon. Mayor Nimal Chandrasiri De Silva, the organization’s chairman, will co-sign it.

In international affiliation agreements, the organizations agree to work together to share information and resources, seek opportunities to work cooperatively on international consulting projects, jointly promote the values and ethics of professional management, and participate in the International Management Exchange Program.

ICMA has worked in Sri Lanka as a subcontractor to the Asia Foundation on a program that supported Sri Lanka’s transition to a successful democratic society. ICMA provided technical assistance to help 35 local authorities make key political institutions more responsive to citizen input, improve the delivery of services to citizens, provide post-tsunami emergency recovery assistance, and increase the rule of law to protect and empower vulnerable groups.