Photo: Joseph Nobetau

Leaders from Bougainville and Papua New Guinea have finally agreed to the question that will be asked in next year's independence referendum.

The referendum - tentatively scheduled for next June - will mark the end of a 20-year peace process that followed the end of the Bougainville civil war in the 1990s.

The people of Bougainville will be asked whether they want the national parliament to agree to either greater autonomy or full independence.

Do you agree for Bougainville to have: (1) Greater Autonomy (2) Independence Bougainville referendum question

A critical meeting between the two sides to decide the question was extended into late Friday after weeks of delays.

The full details of the agreement are yet to be released.