Executive Team

Inspired by their trip to Sri Lanka to assist the victims of the December 26, 2004, Indian Ocean Tsunami, three close friends from college, founded World Children’s Initiative (WCI). 

Sanjay Daluvoy, MD – Founder & President
Born in Brooklyn, New York and grew up in Los Angeles, California.  He attended Brown University and Jefferson Medical College and went on to do his general surgery residency at George Washington University in Washington DC. Prior to medical school, he founded a healthcare IT company in the Bay Area named, Infinity Markets.  He has also worked in healthcare consulting and for the Agency for Healthcare Policy and Research analyzing the economic impact of proposed health legislation.

Pratheepan Gulasekaram, Esq – Founder & VP, Finance/Legal/Communications
Born in Sri Lanka and grew up in Los Angeles, California. He attended Brown University and Stanford Law School. He has served as law clerk to the Honorable Jacques L. Wiener, Jr., of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, and he has practiced as a litigator at the national firms of O'Melveny & Myers LLP and Susman Godfrey LLP. Deep has taught in middle schools, but most recently has taught law at Loyola University Law School in New Orleans, New York University School of Law, and is currently teaching constitutional law at Santa Clara University.

Kanishka Ratnayaka, MD – Founder & VP, Program Development
Born in Sri Lanka and grew up in Athens, Georgia. He attended Brown University and Emory University School of Medicine. Since then, he has completed his Pediatric Residency, Chief Residency, and Pediatric Cardiology Fellowship at Children's National Medical Center (CNMC) in Washington DC.  Kanishka now serves as an Assistant Professor for GWU & Interventional Pediatric Cardiology at Children’s National Heart Institute.

Lionel Jayaratne – Sri Lanka Country Director / Project Peds Project Manager
Born and raised in Sri Lanka.  He has worked quite intensively over the past 20 years in the development world, primarily in Sri Lanka with USAid.