Thank you, Mr. Chair, and thank you to the witnesses as well.
Ms. Ramji, I'll start with you.
You made a comment about interaction. I agree with you 100% that business-to-business interaction is very important for new SMEs to move forward. That is why our government, specifically the Minister of Trade, takes a business delegation with him when he travels.
I had an experience when I went with him to England a few months back. We took a few businesses from all areas. Believe me, I asked quite a few business people and everyone was very happy to have new connections even in advance of the CETA, which we hope to see in the coming years.
As part of the global markets action plan, this government is emphasizing the role of small and medium-sized enterprises. Specifically, we are looking at how many SMEs export and trade internationally and what we can do to bolster the numbers.
When Figure 1 expanded its operations into Europe and Asia, did it take advantage of any federal programs like the trade commissioner service's expertise in foreign economies?