 Prime Minister Hon. Philip J. Pierre, the Cabinet of Ministers, senior government officials and invited guests, held an exchange with a delegation from the African Export-Import Bank on February 20th. Professor Benedict O'Rama heads up the Afrixim Bank as its President and Chief Executive What I want to assure you is that we understand the responsibility we have for so many years. We recognize the need to come together. We recognize the need to see how we exploit our markets together. The high-level meeting marked the first step towards exploring opportunities to secure trade and project financing from the Afrixim Bank for the pay administration's development agenda. Would your bank make it easier when a loan is applied for so that the money can get into the project? What was the time span that you think happened? That's our basic problem. It takes two, three years and by the time costs have changed, it doesn't have the maximum use that it ought to have. No, you are right. It's a problem. But don't forget that we are an exchange bank. We are a trade finance bank. We do not have the luxury of delay. So that is a DNA of our bank. If somebody wants to, for example, they take the simple one. They want to do an export. You don't have, you don't have even six months to get everybody to do it. Otherwise, it's finished. So we have the DNA of speed. If you ask anybody, that's what, that's one thing they would tell you about. Afrixim Bank. A potential partnership with the African Export-Import Bank could also open doors for St. Lucia's exporters and manufacturers to the African marketplace. From the office of the prime minister, Rihanny Isidou.