Chief Executive Appointment for Great South

Chief Executive Appointment for Great South

Great South’s Board of Directors are pleased to announce the appointment of Chami Abeysinghe to the role of Chief Executive at Great South, Southland’s regional development agency.



Board Chair and interim Chief Executive, Ian Collier, said he is delighted that Mrs Abeysinghe will be leading the Great South team as the region goes through what is an incredibly exciting phase of development and growth.

“With our region going through a significant period of transformation in so many sectors of our economy, we are very much looking forward to welcoming Chami to the team and to the experience, knowledge, and leadership qualities that Chami will bring to the role,”

Currently International Director at the Southern Institute of Technology, Mrs Abeysinghe has previously held several executive roles internationally in the education, exporting, and marketing sectors, and has significant experience in stakeholder engagement, financial management and strategic planning.

As a proud Southlander, Mrs Abeysinghe is excited at the opportunity to lead Southland’s regional development agency.

“With so much going on across our region, it’s hard to imagine a more exciting time to be joining the Great South team! There are many projects either underway, or in the pipeline, and I’m looking forward to supporting the team and engaging with our shareholders to deliver the transformational change that is occurring across Murihiku,”

Mrs Abeysinghe will replace Ian Collier who has been in the role of Interim Chief Executive for the organisation since April when previous Chief Executive Graham Budd died unexpectedly.

Mrs Abeysinghe will take up her role with Great South on Monday the 19th of September.

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