WHILE addressing a cabinet meeting, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani had said that efforts would be made to provide relief to the common man in the next budget and achieve macroeconomic stability through different initiatives.

Giving guidelines to the finance ministry on the next budget‚ he said the budget should be people-friendly and priority should be given to alleviating the difficulties of the common man and providing him relief. He said job creation would be the top priority in the next budget, and added that job opportunities for one hundred thousand youth should be created.

In order to ensure cost-effective service delivery to the masses‚ expansion and strengthening of infrastructure and improvement of governance should be our priority. Let us hope for the best in the upcoming budget.

RAHIMA MOIN Karachi