"The Secretary-General is very encouraged by the outcome of the summit," said a statement released by his spokeswoman Michele Montas.

Ban urged the Burundian government and the political arm of the Hutu rebel National Liberation Forces (FNL) "to implement their agreements and the steps outlined in the summit declaration in good faith, in full and with a sense of urgency and determination, so as to bring this last phase of the peace process to a successful conclusion."

According to the final statement of Thurdday's Bujumbura summit, the FNL softened its stance on two key points.

The Palipehutu party (FNL's political arm) has so far refused to remove tribal references from its name and had rejected previous power-sharing offers, demanding more senior cabinet posts.

"The Palipehutu-FNL, represented by its chairman Agathon Rwasa, acknowledges that under its current name, it cannot be registered as a political party because the constitution does not allow it," the summit statement said.

It was signed by Palipehutu-FNL chairman Agathon Rwasa and Burundian President Pierre Nkurunziza in the presence of several regional leaders, including Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, who chairs the Burundi peace initiative.

The Bujumbura government and the FNL signed a ceasefire deal in 2006 but its implementation had stumbled and both sides had remained at loggerheads over several points.

Burundi, a small central African nation, has been struggling to emerge from a civil conflict that has left 300,000 dead since 1993.

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