Naseer Ahamed Zainulabdeen

Hon.
Naseer Ahamed
Governor
නසීර් අහමඩ්
நஸீர் அஹமட்
Governor of the North Western Province
In office
2 May 2024 – 25 September 2024
PresidentRanil Wickremesinghe
Prime MinisterDinesh Gunawardena
Preceded byLakshman Yapa Abeywardena
Succeeded byTissa Kumarasiri
Minister of Environment
In office
18 April 2022 – 6 October 2023
PresidentRanil Wickremesinghe
Prime MinisterDinesh Gunawardena
Preceded byMahinda Amaraweera
Succeeded byKeheliya Rambukwella
Member of Parliament
for Batticaloa District
In office
20 August 2020 – 6 October 2023
Succeeded bySeyed Ali Zahir Moulana
3rd Chief Minister of the Eastern Province
In office
6 February 2015 – 30 September 2017
GovernorAustin Fernando
Preceded byM. N. Abdul Majeed
Eastern Provincial Minister of Agriculture, Animal Production & Development, Rural Industries Development Production, Fisheries and Tourism
In office
September 2012 – February 2015
GovernorMohan Wijewickrama
Chief MinisterM. N. Abdul Majeed
Member of the Eastern Provincial Council
In office
September 2012 – September 2017
ConstituencyBatticaloa District
Presidential Adviser
In office
2007–2010
PresidentMahinda Rajapaksa
Personal details
Born (1961-04-16) 16 April 1961
Eravur, Dominion of Ceylon
PartyIndependent (since 2023)
Other political
affiliations		Sri Lanka Muslim Congress
(1994–2023)
Democratic Unity Alliance
(2003–2012)
National Unity Alliance
(2004–2014)
Alma materKing Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals And Royal College, Colombo
OccupationPolitician / Businessman
ProfessionEngineer (B.S in Electrical Engineering from KFUPM)

Naseer Ahamed Zainulabdeen (born 16 April 1961) is a Sri Lankan politician. Naseer Ahamed has been active in Sri Lankan politics since 1994, having held various positions such as Minister of Environment,[1] Member of Parliament from the Batticaloa district,[2] Governor of the North Western Province,[3] Chief Minister of the Eastern Province[4] and more.

Early life and education

Ahamed pursued a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering at King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals (KFUPM) in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. Ahamed graduated with Honours from KFUPM in 1990, having completed his research on the analysis of tapered wave guide by splitting the non-uniform structure into uniform structures.[5]

Political career

Naseer Ahamed entered politics in 1994 and began his political career as Director of international relations and Member of the High Command of the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC), under the leadership of SLMC founder M. H. M. Ashraff.[6] Ahamed was also appointed as Director of international relations and Member of the High Command of the National Unity Alliance (NUA), Ashraff's newest political alliance.[6]

Following Ashraff's death, Naseer Ahamed left the SLMC and NUA in 2003 and founded his own party, the Democratic Unity Alliance (DUA), where he served as leader.[7] Former Governor A. J. M. Muzammil was the first to contest under DUA, and secured a seat from the Colombo District at the 2004 Western Provincial Council elections.[8] Along with the Democratic Unity Alliance, Ahamed also formed the Muslim National Alliance (MNA), and served as the secretary general of the party.[9]

Between 2007 and 2010, Ahamed served as an advisor to then-incumbent president Mahinda Rajapaksa during the final stages of the Sri Lankan civil war.[6]

Eastern Provincial Council (2012–2017)

Ahamed secured a seat in the Eastern Provincial Council, contesting as a member of the SLMC. He was then appointed as Minister of Agriculture, Animal Production & Development, Rural Industries Development, Fisheries and Tourism of the Eastern Provincial Council.[10][11]

In 2015, he was appointed as the Chief Minister of Eastern Province and Minister of Finance and Planning, Law & Order, Local Government & Regional Administration, Rural Development, Tourism & Environment, Building & Construction, Transport, Rural Industries and Housing.[4]

Parliament of Sri Lanka (2020–2023)

Ahamed contested the 2020 parliamentary election as part of the SLMC and was elected to parliament from the Batticaloa district to the 16th Parliament of Sri Lanka.[12]

Minister of Environment (2022–2023)

Ahamed was appointed as Minister of Environment in 2022 and was a member of the Cabinet of Sri Lanka.[13]

Naseer Ahamed was appointed as special envoy of the president for Middle Eastern affairs.[14] Ahamed conveyed messages from president Ranil Wickremesinghe to notable Arab leaders such as Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia Mohammed bin Salman and Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan of the United Arab Emirates.[14][15]

Naseer Ahamed was also elected as President of the Sri Lanka–Saudi Arabia Parliamentary Friendship Association.[16]

On 6 October 2023, Ahamed was dismissed from his seat and his ministerial portfolio after being expelled from the SLMC.[17]

Governor of the North Western Province (2024)

On 2 May 2024, Ahamed was sworn in as Governor of the North Western Province by president Ranil Wickremesinghe.[3] He resigned on 25 September 2024 following the election of Anura Kumara Dissanayake, Wickremesinghe's successor.[18]

References

  1. ^ "Sri Lanka to launch the Climate Justice Forum (CJF) at COP 28 – Presidential Secretariat of Sri Lanka". Retrieved 14 September 2024.
  2. ^ "Parliament of Sri Lanka - Naseer Ahamed". parliament.lk. Retrieved 14 September 2024.
  3. ^ a b "New governors of Southern and North Western provinces sworn in". www.adaderana.lk. Retrieved 24 January 2026.
  4. ^ a b "New Chief Minister appointed for Eastern Province". news.lk. Retrieved 14 September 2024.
  5. ^ "How Arab News article changed Sri Lankan minister's life". Arab News. 20 January 2023. Retrieved 22 September 2024.
  6. ^ a b c "|| News". archives.dailynews.lk. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  7. ^ "Online edition of Daily News - Politics". 11 December 2004. Archived from the original on 11 December 2004. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  8. ^ "Election Commission". elections.gov.lk. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  9. ^ "Parliament of Sri Lanka - Parliament of Sri Lanka". www.parliament.lk. Retrieved 20 September 2024.
  10. ^ "PART IV (A) - PROVINCIAL COUNCILS Proclamations & c., by the Governors EASTERN PROVINCE PROVINCIAL COUNCIL Appointments made by the Governor of the Eastern Province" (PDF). The Gazette of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka Extraordinary. 1777/36. 28 September 2012.
  11. ^ "Agriculture plays major role in Eastern Province economy - Provincial Minister". archives.dailynews.lk. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  12. ^ "Parliament of Sri Lanka - Naseer Ahamed". www.parliament.lk. Retrieved 20 September 2024.
  13. ^ "Eight Cabinet Ministers of All-Party Government sworn in before President… – Presidential Secretariat of Sri Lanka". Retrieved 20 September 2024.
  14. ^ a b "Minister Naseer Ahamed presents a special message from the Sri Lankan president to Saudi Crown Prince - Colombo Times". 29 August 2022. Retrieved 14 September 2024.
  15. ^ "UAE President receives written letter from Sri Lankan President". www.mofa.gov.ae. Retrieved 20 September 2024.
  16. ^ "Hon. Naseer Ahamed elected as the president of the Sri Lanka-Saudi Arabia Parliamentary Friendship Association". www.news.lk. Retrieved 14 September 2024.
  17. ^ "Supreme Court in landmark judgement affirms power of political parties to expel members". Sri Lanka News - Newsfirst. 6 October 2023. Retrieved 10 October 2023.
  18. ^ "Naseer Ahamed resigns as North Western Governor". Latest in the News Sphere | The Morning. 23 September 2024. Retrieved 24 January 2026.
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