The United Nations says 250 members of Somalia's transitional parliament are attending a training seminar to help them understand how federal government works.
U.N. officials say the six-day seminar in Somalia's temporary capital of Baidoa this week will teach lawmakers about how power is lawfully shared between branches of government.
The seminar is one of six U.N. projects backing reconciliation efforts in Somalia. Other projects include trying to prevent the return of large-scale conflict among militias, reviving the business climate and developing a legal system.
Somalia has been without a central government for 15 years and much of the country remains lawless, including the former capital Mogadishu.
A U.N. development plan for Somalia calls for writing and holding a referendum on a new Constitution by 2009.