Yesterday, a delegation arrived in Baidoa, the capital of the Bay region, for the visit of the President of Somalia, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud.

The chief of staff of Somalia's Presidency, Hussein Sheikh Mohamud, and other officials are leading the advance team reached Baidoa under beefed-up security.

In the next few hours, Mohamud is scheduled to arrive in Baidoa to open a Reconciliation Conference called by the Speaker of the Lower House Sheikh Aden Madobe.

The purpose of the talks is to resolve the dispute over the presidential election in the Southwest which has been delayed following the term extension of Lafta-Garen.

Several people were killed in December 2022 after clashes in Baidoa between regional forces and the opposition candidate's bodyguards who resisted an attack.

The conference was planned to open on the 5th of January, but it was delayed after some members of the Union of Presidential Candidates protested over Lafta-Gareen's extension.

The latest updates on the conference say there is yet another delay over technical reasons as delegates are not present in the city, mostly staying in Mogadishu.