Djibouti's parliament has unanimously lifted the age limit set in the country's constitution to allow the country's president to run for a sixth term.

Ismail Omar Guelleh, 77, has led Djibouti, a small country located in a key location between the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, for the past 25 years.

Djibouti's constitution prohibits a leader from running for president if he is over 75 years old. This constitutional restriction will prevent President Guelleh from running in the elections next year.

But a constitutional amendment to allow the president to run for another term was presented to the country's parliament on Sunday and approved by all members, the speaker told AFP.

The president is expected to accept and approve the parliament's decision or put it to a referendum, and if approved, parliament will vote on it a second time a week later.

It was President Omar Guelleh himself who proposed to include in the country's constitution an article imposing an age limit on candidates running for president, which is now being revised for members of parliament in Djibouti.

This change, made in 2010 by the President, not only eliminated presidential term limits but also reduced the length of a single term from six years to five.