Nairobi — UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan has said the UN will step up its humanitarian and development assistance to Somalia if the Somali parties ensure access and the safety of humanitarian workers.

"The United Nations will do all it can to help the people of Somalia heal the wounds of conflict, including through the development of a post-conflict peace-building mission when security conditions permit," Annan said in a statement read out on his behalf at the Somali National Reconciliation Conference.

The conference, organised by the regional Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD) in a bid to reconcile the various Somali groups, opened on Tuesday in the Kenyan town of Eldoret, after months of debate and postponements.

While congratulating the efforts of IGAD, Annan said no amount of goodwill, support and assistance could bring peace to Somalia. "Only Somalia's leaders can decide to end the suffering of their people, and only they can decide to negotiate an end to the conflict," he said.

He called on the Somali parties and leaders to cooperate with IGAD in ending a decade of conflict in the country and the immense suffering of their people. Annan said the leaders must rise above their differences and put the interests of Somalis first.