Sri Lanka’s Lilan Dayananda in Forbes “30 Under 30 Asia” List

Sri Lankan entrepreneur Lilan Dayananda has been honored by Forbes as one of the 300 young entrepreneurs, leaders, influencers, and trailblazers across the Asia-Pacific region in its ninth annual "30 Under 30 Asia" list. This prestigious list, featuring individuals under the age of 30, highlights those driving industry transformations and pioneering innovative solutions to adapt to evolving business landscapes. Now in its ninth year, the Asia list is an extension of the Forbes 30 Under 30 franchise, which began more than a decade ago.

Lilan Dayananda is the co-founder and CEO of Elzian Agro. He gained recognition as one of the top ten Youth Social Entrepreneurs at the Global-South Development Expo 2022, an accolade awarded by the United Nations Youth Envoy’s Office, United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), International Telecommunication Union (ITU), and UNDP Youth Co:Lab. In 2022, he was also honored with the Commonwealth Youth Award for excellence in development work. Furthermore, in 2023, he was listed among the top 100 meaningful business founders by Ernst & Young (EY), Hogan Lovells Global Law Firms, and Babson College, in association with the Meaningful Business Community.

He holds a Business Management (Special) Degree from the University of Kelaniya and is currently pursuing his Master's Degree at Wayamba University. He is an ALS Public Policy fellow at the Harris School of Public Policy at the University of Chicago and an Anubhav fellow at the Indian School of Public Policy. Additionally, he completed the Stanford Seed Spark Program at the Stanford Graduate School of Business.

Since 2021, Elzian Agro, under Lilan's leadership, has been dedicated to research and innovation, developing validated solutions for climate-smart, data-driven precision agriculture, regenerative agriculture, biodiversity restoration, analog forestry, and agroforestry. His mission through this initiative is to deliver effective, sustainable solutions to enhance food security in all its forms.