A Bright Light at SKAL Asia Congress 2019

Bangalore (India) – July 5, 2019 (travelindex.com) – The 48th Skål Asia Congress was officially opened by Skål International President Lavonne Wittman and local tourism dignitaries recently.

The congress took place in what is often referred to as India’s I.T. city – Bangalore. The headquarters hotel was the Taj MG Road Hotel during 27th-30th June 2019.

President Lavonne said, “I am honored to be part of your congress and proud to be your President. My Presidential theme for this year is strength through collaboration.

“Are you interested in or committed to enjoying this journey with me?

“Building a strong organization that is focused on collaboration is a key element for success. A team that works together has a strong shared vision and continually searches for ways to improve and adds to the success,” President Lavonne commented.

In front of 300 delegates, a spectacular flag parade was followed by a dazzling cultural performance and the traditional lamp lighting ceremony signifying the opening of the Congress. Skål Asia with over 2,500 members in 43 Clubs, 28 grouped in five national committees and 15 affiliated, the Skål Asian Area is the most diverse Area in the world of Skål, reaching from Guam in the Pacific Ocean more than 10,000 km to Mauritius in the Indian Ocean with clubs in 19 countries in between.

During his opening address acting Asia Area, President Jano Mouawad announced that membership in Asia continues to grow with 2,525 members today and new clubs are formed. President Jano went on to thank congress organizer and President of Skal Bangalore, Manoj Matthews for a job well done.

Following elections the new committee, elected for a 2-year term, is listed below:

SKÅL ASIA EXCO 2019-21

1 – Sanjay Datta – President – INDIA
2 – Andrew J Wood – VP Southeast Asia – THAILAND
3 – Keethi Jayaweera – VP West Asia – SRI LANKA
4 – Fabien Clerc – VP of East Asia – JAPAN
5 – Saravanan Palanivelu – Treasurer – INDIA
6 – Shekhar Divadkar – Secretary – INDIA
7 – Michelle Sandhu – Int’l Councillor (IC) – SINGAPORE
8 – P K Mohankumar – PR & Comms – INDIA
9 – Dushy Jayaweera – Membership Development – SRI LANKA
10 – Shalini Khanna Charles – Young Skal and Student Exchange (YS & SE) – INDIA
11 – Sunil Acharya – Snr Auditor – INDIA
12 – Felix Fernandez – Jnr Auditor – MALAYSIA

The congress site for next year’s 49th Asia Area Congress was confirmed to take place in Thailand in Phuket 25th-28th June 2020.