Mahesh C. Khemlani has assumed office as the new President of the Panama Diamond Exchange following an official inauguration ceremony held on the PDE trading floor in the presence of diamond exchange members and invited guests.

Among representatives of Panama's government and diplomatic community present on the occasion were  Manuel Grimaldo, Panama's Vice Minister Of Commerce; Shamma Jain, Ambassador of India; Koenraad Lenaerts, Ambassador of Belgium; Ana Berta De Alberto, Ambassador of Argentina; Isabel Méndez, Commercial Attaché at the Embassy of Israel; Patrick Mallmann, Diplomatic Attaché at the Embassy of Brazil; Miguel Sebastián, Minister Counselor at the Embassy of the Dominican Republic; Boris Calderón, Commercial Attaché at the Embassy of Bolivia; and Viviana Artzyeli, wife of the Ambassador of Israel.

At the ceremony, Ali Pastorini also assumed charge as Senior Vice President of PDE, joining Executive Vice President Joseph Kuzi and Vice President Judy Meana among others on the executive team.

Addressing the gathering, PDE's Founding Chairman Eli Izhakoff congratulated the new president and officers, and emphasised the importance of the mission that stands before them. "Solid foundations have been laid, but now begins the critical task of building upon them, establishing here in Panama not only Latin America's leading diamond, gemstone and jewelry trading organization, but also the business infrastructure that will drive the growth of the industry in the region. I am confident that we now have the leadership in place that will make this happen," he said.

Speaking at the ceremony, Khemlani spoke of the promise of the diamond exchange in Latin America's growing gemstone and jewellery trade. "This is a business that performs at optimal strength when it achieves a critical mass of personnel and products. We are building at PDE a large and active community of professionals, the like of which this region has never before seen, and collectively they will achieve that absolutely essential critical mass. We have clear vision of the path ahead," he stated.

Pic Caption: (from left) Ali Pastorini, Mahesh Khemlani, Eli Izhakoff, Joseph Kuzi and Judy Meana.