Harsha Aturupane is a Lead Economist and Program Leader for Human Development for Sri Lanka and the Maldives. He has a Ph.D and M.Phil in Economics from the University of Cambridge, and a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and Postgraduate Diploma in Economic Development from the University of Colombo.

He has worked and written extensively on human development, education economics, general education, higher education, labor economics, health economics, and the economics of poverty and income distribution. He has led teams in the preparation and supervision of World Bank projects and programs, covering higher education, general education, health, social protection, economic reform, private sector development, and strengthening fiduciary processes. He has also led teams in the production of World Bank research reports including higher education, general education, vocational training and labor markets. His experience covers working in countries such as India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Afghanistan, and the Maldives in the South Asia Region, as well as countries in the Middle-East and North Africa Region.