Embedded SQL method 4 in C

I'm working on a DB Browser application that uses dynamic SQL method 4:

EXEC SQL PREPARE S FROM :DB_Statement;
EXEC SQL DECLARE C CURSOR FOR S;
EXEC SQL OPEN C USING DESCRIPTOR LV_BindArray; EXEC SQL DESCRIBE SELECT LIST FOR S INTO LV_SelectArray; EXEC SQL WHENEVER NOT FOUND DO break;
for(;;)
  EXEC SQL FETCH C USING DESCRIPTOR LV_SelectArray; EXEC SQL CLOSE C; Allthough the querying works fine, it is very slow - even slower than SQL*Plus!

Is there a way to speed things up a bit, for instance using batch fetching? And if so, how do I do this with method 4 (the sqlca & sqlda structures aren't expactly descriptive)? An example would be appreciated as I am new to method 4 (so far, method 3 has been sufficient)...

Thanx,

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Ketil Hunn