Professor Eliathamby Ambikairajah, renowned academic and community leader, has been awarded the Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) in the 2026 Australia Day Honours. This marks a momentous recognition of his exceptional contributions to tertiary education, research, electrical engineering, technology innovation, and his lifelong service to the Sri Lankan community in Australia.

An old boy of Jaffna Hindu College, Professor Ambikairajah holds the distinction of being the first Sri Lankan academic to serve in senior leadership roles at the University of New South Wales (UNSW), including as Deputy Vice Chancellor for Innovation and Enterprise and long-serving Head of the School of Electrical Engineering and Telecommunications.

The AO is the second highest honour in Australia, awarded for distinguished service of a high degree to Australia or humanity at large. For Professor Ambikairajah, this national honour represents a remarkable acknowledgment of decades of pioneering academic leadership and unwavering community engagement.

His academic journey began in Sri Lanka, graduating in engineering from the University of Moratuwa, followed by early research work as a Scientific Officer at CISIR. He went on to become the first Sri Lankan recipient of the prestigious Philips Research Scholarship in the Netherlands, where his co-invention significantly contributed to modern automatic radio tuning technology in car radios.

He completed his PhD in Signal Processing at Keele University in the UK and rapidly rose through academic ranks at the Athlone Institute of Technology in Ireland, serving as Lecturer, Head of Department, and Dean of Engineering.

Upon joining UNSW Sydney in 1999, Professor Ambikairajah led the School of Electrical Engineering and Telecommunications to national prominence, establishing it as Australia’s top ranked school in the field, with a growing international reputation. His subsequent appointment as Deputy Vice Chancellor made him a trailblazer not only within UNSW but across the broader Australian academic landscape.

Throughout his illustrious career, Professor Ambikairajah has been recognised with numerous awards, including:

UNSW Vice Chancellor’s Award for Teaching Excellence (2004)
UNSW Excellence in Senior Leadership Award (2014)
UNSW President’s People’s Choice Award (2019)
Engineering Excellence Award 2025 from the Institution of Engineers Sri Lanka (NSW Chapter)

The son of the late Murugesu Eliathamby a respected teacher, author, and philosopher, Professor Ambikairajah credits his father’s values as a guiding force behind his pursuit of knowledge, leadership, and service.

Even after retirement from full-time academia, he remains an active contributor to the Sri Lankan community in Australia and a generous supporter of students and academics in Sri Lanka, driven by his enduring commitment to uplift others through education.

This prestigious award is not only a personal honour but also a moment of immense pride for the Sri Lankan diaspora, especially those with roots in Northern Sri Lanka. His life story is a testament to the power of education, resilience, and community-oriented leadership.