"It is an indication that the brand has achieved a unique status in the country," said Sharmila Cassim director marketing of Superbrands, an independent authority and arbiter of branding.

CIMA was awarded the Superbrand status for meeting the criteria of quality of education, reliability and distinction, Cassim says.

It has initiatives such as the corporate partner program in which companies recognize CIMA to be the preferred qualification and promote recognition of the qualification as a corporate benchmark.

CIMA Sri Lanka was established in 1965 as the Association of Cost and Works Accountants and in 1973 became a branch of the UK body which was later elevated to the status of a division.

At present there are over 1,900 CIMA members and over 12,000 registered students in Sri Lanka while 3,900 are overseas.

"We think it (Superbrand status) is worthwhile and represents the success that CIMA has had in Sri Lanka…" Charles Tilley CEO of CIMA told reporters.

A brand is evaluated by a panel consisting of individuals who have experience in business and thorough knowledge of a particular country's markets and methods of business.

Brands are divided into two categories; business-to-consumer (B2C) and business-to-business (B2B) brands.

In Sri Lanka around 50 B2C products were awarded the Superbrands status last year.

Superbrand hopes to award more B2B products this year, says Cassim.