LAHORE (APP) - Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani has said the vision of the government is clear as it wants a prosperous and progressive Pakistan which is at peace with itself and its neighbours. He was addressing the participants of the 90th National Management course and 5th Senior Management Course at the National Management College (NMC) here Saturday. The Prime Minister said there was an urgent need to introduce reforms in the government business processes to get the implementation of policies back on track. The rules will not be allowed to become a hindrance to the process of service delivery and all such laws and rules that are an obstruction to the public service will be weeded out, he said. He said despite being faced with multifaceted challenges in economic and political fields, higher economic growth is the top most priority of the government. He said the present challenge is to achieve a sustained high trajectory of economic growth for reducing poverty and meeting the targets set in the Millennium Development Goals. Gilani said economic indicators suggest upward trend as the economy has achieved stability. He said new jobs are being created to minimise the burden of the poor and the government had started income support programme to provide relief to the poor masses. The Prime Minister said: We inherited an unprecedented complex macroeconomic situation which evolved in the aftermath of troubled domestic and external environment. Our government had to face the uphill task of dealing with the internal political instability, restoration of the judiciary and strengthening of the foreign exchange reserves. He said the country is passing through difficult times and it will take unified efforts to get out of the difficulties with effective pro-people policy making. The Prime Minister said the role of the civil servants is to give policy inputs and to implement government initiatives. If good governance is lacking, the system becomes dysfunctional and service delivery becomes a dream, he added. He said the public policy implementation was the weakest area of bureaucracy. The policies are launched with a lot of fanfare but their implementation is either slow or delayed to such an extent that its purpose dwindles down with the passing time and becomes irrelevant. The PM urged the civil servants to facilitate the public and help empower the masses to do away with the general perception that bureaucracy is an obstacle in the provision of public services to the people. He urged the civil servants to inculcate in themselves a sense of commitment, equip themselves with proper knowledge of latest management techniques and develop a culture of serving the people with dedication as the performance of the civil servants is a reflection of the performance of the government. The Prime Minister said that only a transformed to the core civil service can serve government of any political dispensation. Our government needs a civil service which strives for the implementation of successful change in the society, rather than acting as a mere shock absorber and an agent of status quo, he said. The Prime Minister expressed his desire to groom such a civil service during his premiership which is ever ready to meet all the challenges. He asked the civil servants to get their act together and put forth coordinated efforts for the country as the time for excuses was over. He assured the civil servants of governments support if they work for the good of the people. Earlier, the Prime Minister gave away certificate to 135 civil servants of BPS 19 & 20. Governor Punjab Salman Taseer was also present on the occasion.