President Yoweri Museveni and Mwai Kibaki Friday endured a seven-hour wait to ensure that the Somali peace process is on course. The Somali leaders’ retreat which was to be officially opened at around 11.30 am by the two Heads of State began on a stalemate when a section of the twenty factions’ leaders boycotted the meeting on grounds that they can not proceed unless certain issues were ironed out including the absence of four key leaders who were absent. President Museveni, who is the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD) Heads of States and Government chairman went into a marathon meeting with four different factions of the twenty leaders present to convince them to attend the launch of the retreat culminating in a seven-hour meeting. Various factions including the G8 group of leaders in the talks as well as the Puntland State representatives claimed that IGAD had failed to bring the four leaders — Muse Sudi Yalahow, Osman Hassan Ali, Bare Hirlale and Abdirizak Bihi — to attend the retreat and hence could not proceed without the warring faction leaders. President Museveni prevailed upon the four groups namely, the twenty faction leaders, Somali Transitional National Government President Abdiqasim Salat Hassan, the civil society groups and the Puntland State of Somalia Prime Minister Hassan Abshir, the faction leaders agreed to converge for the launch of the retreat to be held for ten days at Nairobi’s Safari Park Hotel. After the launch of the retreat, President Museveni invited TNG President Abdiqasim Salat Hassan to shake hands with the twenty faction leaders where the entire group hugged, shook hands and embraced each other with song and dance. Addressing the leaders during the launch, President Kibaki said the launch of the retreat would provide a unique opportunity to the leaders to demonstrate their commitment to the peace process. President Kibaki said there was a growing concern over persistent violations of the Eldoret Declarations on the Cessation of Hostilities and warned that leaders in the region cannot afford to move backwards to the senseless violation of the past. He encouraged them to seriously consider upgrading the declaration signed on October 27, 2002 into a comprehensive ceasefire agreement.