Preparations are underway for the South Sudanese president’s visit to neighbouring Sudan, South Sudan’s Information Minister Michael Makuei said on Friday.

“The president has not yet fixed the time for his going to Khartoum but it seems preparations are underway for that visit,” said Minister Makuei.

Makuei, who is also the government spokesman, said President Kiir will be visiting Sudan in response to an invitation from his northern counterpart Omar Al-Bashir.

However, he pointed out that the agenda of the expected meeting between the two leaders remains unclear.

In September 2012, Sudan and South Sudan signed a comprehensive cooperation deal in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa, under the patronage of the East African regional bloc IGAD.

The pact included security, citizens' status, border and economic issues as well as oil and trade-related topics.

However, the signed cooperation agreements did not address the issues of Abyei and border demarcation.