UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres announced on Monday the formation of a constitutional committee for Syria that will include government and opposition representatives, a long-awaited step in the stalled peace process.

"It will be facilitated by the United Nations in Geneva," Guterres told reporters, adding that the committee will be convened in the coming weeks. 

The UN sees the committee as a step forward in efforts to find a political solution to end the more than eight-year war in Syria.

"I firmly believe that the launching of a Syrian-organized and Syrian-led Constitutional Committee can be the beginning of a political path towards a solution," Guterres said.